Better Guidance on Managing Common Mental Health Problems in the Workplace: Supplementing What with How

Abstract

There are many actions employers can take to help prevent common mental health problems from occurring in their workplaces and help those affected return to work at full capacity. However, working-age common mental health problems in developed economies are persistent and resistant to change. Because of the complex etiology, recurring, and often chronic nature of common mental health problems, solutions based purely on workplace regulation are not feasible. Instead, regulatory agencies may supplement regulatory frameworks with guidance on good practice. I review guidance frameworks influential in the UK (three issued by governmental agencies and two by non-governmental agencies), indicating guidance is relatively strong on what to achieve but less so on how to achieve it. Drawing on research on the implementation of workplace health and well-being initiatives, I suggest ways in which guidance from regulators can be extended and how that guidance can best influence organizational practice.