The Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC), in partnership with the Canadian Standards Association and Great-West Life Centre for Mental Health in the Workplace, has released an implementation guide to help Canadian employers fully adopt the National Standard of Canada for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace.
Originally developed by the Canadian Standards Association and the Bureau de normalisation du Québec, and championed by the MHCC, the National Standard is a voluntary set of guidelines, tools and resources focused on promoting employees’ psychological health and preventing psychological harm due to workplace factors.
Read: The National Standard: What employers need to know
“Workplace mental health has a $51-billion economic impact on businesses across Canada, as more than 30% of disability claims and 70% of disability costs are attributed to mental health problems and illness,” says MHCC president and CEO Louise Bradley. “The first step is always the hardest. That’s why we are together offering a hands-on, easy-to-use guide to keeping workplaces healthy.”
Launched in January 2013, the Standard is the first of its kind in the world. More than 21,000 copies of it have been downloaded.
The implementation guide is available for on the MHCC’s website.
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