Good Infrastructure, Faulty Implementation: The Status Of Mental Health In Indian Workplaces

Over the years, mental health has become an integral part of our conversations. Gone are the days when the sole focus was only on physical well-being while our minds were in overdrive, leading to eventual burnout. Several non-profit organisations and other initiatives have made sure that we devote some time to take care of ourselves, in the best way possible.

This has become the norm not just in our households, but in workplaces as well. Almost all office spaces have developed an infrastructure to tackle problems associated with mental health as well as on stress management.

The conversation around mental health gained momentum, especially in the past year. With the advent of COVID-19, the world was turned upside down and nothing remained the same anymore. Office spaces were closed down as employees were strongly advised to work from home for a stipulated period of time. Uncertainty about the future and warped work-life balance made it difficult for us to settle into the new normal.

Mental Health Support in Indian Workplaces

In light of this, a survey published recently brought some good news for India in terms of mental health. Called 'People At Work 2021: A Global Workplace View', the study suggested that support for mental well-being in India is higher than that of the global average. It says that 70% of workers in the country believe that their employers have provided adequate support to inquire about their well-being.

Not only that, many companies even came up with policies that involved having a therapist on call, along with additional leave for self-care. Recently, Future Generali India Insurance gave Mental Health leave to their employees so that they could take time off to give themselves a break from the hectic schedule the corporate world has to offer.

Some in-house counselling bore fruit. A Bangalore-based associate named Tuhina Mandal told The Logical Indian about how the workplace therapy helped her cope with the problems faced in the office. She also talked about the involvement of counsellors in hosting workshops on mental health and stress management, along with working with various teams within the workplace to help manage stress.

Impact of COVID-19

Come COVID-19, our households became temporary office spaces. Pandemic stress brought about uncertainty as well as anxiety about what the future held for us. Many are still struggling with it.

With regard to this, several companies tweaked their policies in a way to cater to the employees' needs during such tough times. For a freelancer named Sanjana Bagga, her previous company came up with a policy where they connected their employees to a therapist remotely as they were working from home.

The Big Picture: Faulty Implementation

While the survey may say that such support in Indian workplaces is growing day by day, the implementational reality is different. On paper, such infrastructures make a lot of sense. However, the question still remains about its functioning. As a country, we have a long way to go when it comes to mental health. The road is a long one with a lot of hurdles that have to be crossed.

Be it our homes or our offices, conversations about our mental well-being is still considered a taboo. Going to a therapist can become fodder of meaningless gossip that does nothing but trigger anxiety and stress all the more. This, specially holds true in offices around the country.

The company Bagga was a part of had systems in place to tackle the needful, it was the shoddy implementation that bothered her. It had a policy where they offered to connect the employees to a therapist remotely, but they did not act upon it.

Their delaying tactics with regards to troubleshooting in the office was not up to the mark as well.

"When we approached our HR with a problem, they always told us to document it. However, with no procedure for giving feedback to our managers in place, this documentation made no sense. Our grievances could not be heard at all," she said.

Further, she added that initially, the employers were perfectly alright with her taking leave for self-care, but held it against her when she came back to work.

In Tuhina Mandal's case, there is still room for improvement. She said, "The services to tackle such problems existed, there were workshops as well, but it did not have any effect on the overall office culture. The work environment was not conducive for mental health as many people still worked overtime to make their ends meet. The stigma around it still exists as there is still no open conversation about the same within the teams and outside workshops. There are no periodic check-ins by the managers as well."

Sensitisation is Necessary

A counselling psychologist from New Delhi named Aishwarya Kumar presses on the need for sensitising offices about the kind of problems that stem out of a toxic workplace promoting the ultra-glorified 'hustle culture.' "In some offices, mental health workshops are only held on managerial levels. Therefore, only a small fraction of people benefit from it, when it actually should be the entire workforce," she said. She also expressed her doubt about the level of confidentiality maintained during a therapy session in the workplace, as it is one of the most important aspects in such counselling sessions.

"Since such sessions take place in the office space, confidentiality becomes a big concern. One is not sure how the company is ensuring the same, which could also result in the lack of trust on the client's part that will negate the idea of therapy, "Kumar added.

Also she saw an increase in the number of clients during work from home. She quipped,"With work from home becoming the new normal, the employee has to be available 24/7 and the break times have reduced considerably. This will take a heavy toll on their mental health as they will face the heat and won't perform in the desirable manner."

Need Of The Hour

For obvious reasons, sensitisation is an integral part of this problem. However, it is the stigma that has to be reduced surrounding mental health. Kumar wants such companies to understand that their employees are fighting their own battles. Any kind of gossip or demotivation surrounding an individual seeking therapy does more harm than good. "Communication is key. It should be healthy as well. It is the job of these workplaces to ensure that so that their employees could trust the process and avail the services," she said.

In conclusion, India has a very long way to go when it comes to talking about mental health. The potentially effective infrastructure needs an equally strong implementation to back it so that anxiety, stress, depression and other problems can be tackled efficiently and without any prejudice.

Also Read: Only 41% Young In India Seek Help For Battling Mental Health Issues