Last month, ACAS, the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service, published a number of new resources providing guidance to employers and employees on how to recognise and manage stress and mental health issues in the workplace. As part of these new resources, ACAS has published a new guidance document which specifically deals with reasonable adjustments for mental health.
It is important to note that not all mental health issues are disabilities and many individuals will, at some point during their working life, experience short term mental health issues. For example an employee may experience mental health issues related to bereavement or the menopause. In this respect, the new ACAS Guidance takes a more holistic approach to mental health than the current law requires. In particular, the ACAS Guidance encourages employers to consider implementing reasonable adjustments even if the individual does not have a disability as defined in the Equality Act 2010 and there is no legal requirement to make any reasonable adjustments. The advantage of this approach is that it could foster a more open and inclusive culture and reduce the stigma of mental health issues. In addition, if an employee’s mental health issues are recognised and effectively managed at an early stage, it could help to prevent the deterioration of the employee’s mental health, and in turn, long term sickness absences.
In view of the varied nature of mental health issues, it is often difficult to identify and appropriately manage such issues in the workplace. It is therefore often the case that managers feel ill equipped to deal with employees experiencing mental health issues. The ACAS Guidance helpfully has a section devoted to assist managers with conversations, support and any follow up actions when managing an individual with mental health issues.
The ACAS Guidance provides helpful practical advice for both employers and employees with step by step guidance on how to request reasonable adjustments and how such requests should be dealt with. There are also examples of the possible reasonable adjustments that could be considered and additional support that could be put in place for employees experiencing mental health issues. In addition, ACAS has published four detailed case studies which cover real life examples of how common mental health issues have been managed in the workplace.
The new ACAS Guidance is likely to be welcomed by both employers and employees who find themselves navigating the tricky subject of mental health, sometimes in the absence of a specific diagnosis. It is also a timely reminder for employers to review their existing policies and procedures and to consider whether they wish to include a specific policy for managing mental health and reasonable adjustments.
Employers should also be mindful of the fact that what might be a reasonable adjustment for one individual may not necessarily be appropriate for another individual experiencing the same or a similar mental health issue. It is therefore important that employers consider mental health issues on a case by case basis and that they seek guidance and, where necessary, input from medical professionals when considering reasonable adjustments and workplace management.