KUALA LUMPUR: Employers are being urged to introduce an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to address mental health issues in the workplace.
National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye said with the EAP, employees suffering from mental illnesses could be identified and assisted so that their performance would improve.
Lee said they should boost mental health education and promotion programmes to address the rise of psychosocial problems.
“No workplace is immune to mental health issues. Their impact in psychological, social and economic terms is high.
“As we aspire to achieve developed nation status, this obviously will exert tremendous pressure to deal with our daily responsibilities, which could lead to stressful predicaments,” he said, at the 34th Asia Pacific Occupational Safety and Health Organisation (Aposho 34) conference and annual general meeting in Guiyang, China, today.
Delivering his keynote paper “Managing Mental Health Issues at Workplace — NIOSH Malaysia’s Approach”, Lee said all stakeholders must treat mental health like any other health concern.
“It’s important for every person to get the care he needs, including at the workplace,” he said.
“Every person with a disability has the right to work, be treated equally and not be discriminated.
“Every person should also be provided with all the support needed at the workplace,” he said, adding that Article 27 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) provides for a legally-binding global framework to promote the rights of people with disabilities, including psychosocial disabilities.
As Malaysia’s leading institute for occupational safety and health (OSH), he said NIOSH had introduced several programmes to help employers and staff manage mental health at the workplace.
One such programme, he said, was the mental health module, which was introduced in collaboration with the Health Ministry.
Lee said mental illness was a leading cause of economic loss at all levels, due to direct and indirect health costs.
He said it was responsible for causing absenteeism, loss of work productivity and decreased income, which can affect national economic output.
Lee said mental health issues will be highlighted at the 35th conference and annual general meeting of the Asia Pacific Occupational Safety and Health Organisation (APOSHO 35) in Kuala Lumpur next year.
Aposho 35 is jointly organised by NIOSH, Malaysian Society for Occupational Safety and Health (MSOSH) and Malaysia Occupational Safety and Health Practitioners’ Association. (Moshpa)