True story.
I was working as an
editorial assistant at a publishing company in the city.
I’d arrived at the
office one morning and had barely settled in when a coworker asked whether I’d
heard about Steve (not his real name).
“What happened?” I
joked, “Did he kill himself?”
My friend paused and
gave me a look. Turns out Steve had
killed himself.
Of course, I immediately
felt terrible. And not just for making an insensitive joke. See, Steve was a
sad person, and while I’d picked up on that, I’d had no idea what to do about it. He was several rungs up the ladder
from me, and we weren’t close. Still, our limited interactions had been
positive. He was a nice guy.
However, years passed,
and I’d all but forgotten about Steve until today when I read "Addressing
Suicide in the Workplace."
The article discusses
how HR folks can help prevent a vulnerable worker from hurting himself.
Johnny Lee, founding
director of Peace@Work, which has the
mission of preventing workplace violence, is quoted in the article as saying, “We
need to have people realize it’s OK [to talk about mental illness] … “It’s fine
to ask … if you think someone’s hurting themselves.”
It’s a good reminder.
Sensitivity to the prohibitions of the ADA would stop many an HR pro from
approaching an employee, no matter how troubling his behavior, but really, it’s
okay. And if the situation is handled properly, it’ll be more than okay.
I’ve found that just
about every sticky employee relations issue can be handled well if you start
and end with work. Talking about work keeps you on solid ground, so stay there
by speaking with the employee about what changes you’ve noticed in her performance,
whether lateness, or increased absences, or missed deadlines, or something
else. (The article mentions weight loss or a “sleep-deprived appearance,” but personally
I wouldn’t go there first. My experience is, when something serious is going on
in a person’s life, performance will tell.)
I also highly recommend
working in tandem with an employee assistance program (EAP), if at all
possible. EAP counselors have seen just about everything and can be invaluable sources
of information. And, whether you’re recommending an employee to the EAP or
issuing a formal referral, your EAP account manager can walk you through the
process. I’ve used PENN
Behavioral Health with no complaints. And, as benefits go, monthly fees are
quite reasonable.
Most of us will never
work with someone who later commits suicide, and that’s a really good thing.
However, according to
the National
Institute of Mental Health in any given year 26.2% of adult Americans
suffer from a diagnosable mental illness. That’s greater than one in four, so
odds are, if you practice HR long enough, you will face these issues. They’re
tough, to be sure, but you can handle it, and you must.
Thank you. This is a nice and useful article.
ReplyDeleteYou're most welcome. My pleasure.
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