A strategy to address workplace mental health has been released by WorkSafe Victoria to address the growing challenge of mental injuries at work and help create positive, mentally healthy workplaces for all workers.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of WorkSafe, Colin Radford said the new Mental Health Strategy 2021-2024 outlined WorkSafe’s plan to prevent mental injury, build capacity for mentally healthy workplaces and support injured workers.
Mr Radford said mental injury claims were expected to grow to a third of all claims in the next decade.
“With many adults spending a third of their life at work, mentally healthy workplaces offer huge benefits to workers, their families and communities, and the productivity of their workplaces,” he said.
“Mentally healthy workplaces have measures in place to identify and control risks to prevent harm, manage harm when it does occur and support recovery.
“Employers have a responsibility to provide and maintain safe working environments and systems, and to control risks to workers’ physical and psychological health.”
Mr Radford said that last year the proportion of all new workplace injury claims related to a primary mental injury grew from nine per cent in 2008 to 13 per cent in 2020, with WorkSafe receiving 3,518 new mental injury claims that year.
The CEO said the Strategy had five focus areas, compliance and enforcement; fostering organisational change; awareness through education and training; building an evidence base; and supporting innovation.
“In order to drive change where it is needed most, workers in high-risk areas will be prioritised,” he said.
Mr Radford said this included priority industries such as health care and social assistance, public administration and safety, and education and training; employer groups, including Government, industries in transition and small business; and at-risk workers like young, ageing and frontline workers.
He said annual action plans to implement the Strategy would begin this financial year, with work to align mental health programs with focus areas and priority groups.
Mr Radford said this work would be undertaken in collaboration with the Department of Health as well as other Government Departments and Agencies.
WorkSafe’s 32-page Strategy can be accessed at this PS News link.
