Despite the fact that ACAS published their guidance aimed at helping employers and employees to understand workplace adjustments for mental health at the end of April 2023 this year, I have discovered that this is still not well known. It is for this reason that I have chosen to highlight it again in case anyone has missed it.
Many of my employer clients are sympathetic to those suffering from mental health issues and/or who are neurodiverse, but they are at a loss as to what to offer to help by way of reasonable adjustments. Also when acting on the other side of the fence for employees, a common response from employers has been to ask the individual what they think might be something that could help them - often this adds to the stress or anxiety that may have already been present.
The ACAS guidance does not re-invent the wheel and some of the
explanations given are relatively obvious. However it is the
examples of reasonable adjustments which I consider to be useful
not least because some of these are not the ones that you might
immediately suggest such as allowing someone to work altered hours,
travel in after rush hour or sit in a more peaceful spot. The
examples drill down a little more than that, for example breaking
down the work into short term tasks, reviewing deadlines and
reducing customer facing work. Of course it is always important not
to jump to a one size fits all situation and to still involve the
employee, but as with putting all the onus on an at risk employee
to find their own alternative position, you should not do the same
for an already vulnerable employee! Furthermore and very important
in this hybrid working environment, adjustments should be made
wherever the employee works.
If an employee splits their time between the workplace and working from home, you need to think about how adjustments can be put in place for both
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