The clear business case for championing emotional wellbeing as an employer
As employers we manage risks on a day to day basis. Our employees' emotional wellbeing should not be one of them. The legal sector is full of driven, talented individuals that we must support to safeguard our profession for the future.
Employers can address emotional wellbeing through preventative measures, corrective measures or a combination of both.
Seismic change within an organisation can only occur when it comes from the top; you will need your senior partners and associates to be on board if you truly want change to happen. Small things can make a difference.
Undertaking training is one of the main ways we can improve our knowledge about mental health and wellbeing, learning about how to support ourselves and others. According to our 2020 wellbeing research, the provision of mental health training across the legal profession is low, but 62% of people felt that training for managers would have a positive impact on workplace culture. 54% felt the same about staff training.
Only 24% of respondents in our 2020 research felt that their supervisors or line managers would know how to support staff with their wellbeing, or signpost confidently to further support.
Explore what resources are available to you to learn more about supporting your own and others' wellbeing, including links to free webinars, modules and links to external courses. These are relevant to anyone in the profession including managers and individual members of staff.
The most effective way to challenge the stigma of mental health is by talking about it openly. Promote positive wellbeing around your office, particularly in common areas like staff kitchens and intranet sites.
Encourage your managers and supervisors to talk
Partners, associates and key decision makers should make an effort to be more open about their feelings at work to help create an honest and open work place and encourage others to talk about their feelings. Talking about our feelings at work can be a challenge, but the key is to make it a normal part of your daily lives.
How often do your supervisors ask how your trainee, solicitor, paralegal or support staff are feeling? Our workload as professionals can be challenging at times and there is no shame in asking for assistance or admitting that you are struggling.
Supervisors should be encouraged to ask “How are you?” “What can I do to help?” on a regular basis and be trained to spot signs that staff members may need support. Effective line management is key to driving wellbeing in any successful organisation.
Want to find out what the big campaigns are in relation to mental health and wellbeing? We have picked out a few key ones to add to your calendar, so you can help your colleagues and staff get involved.
Create a positive culture
Consider whether you wish to issue a policy or vision statement for your firm on mental health and ensure that all existing policies consider the impact of mental health concerns.
Depending on your company structure, you may wish to ensure that mental health is covered in new staff inductions going forward to ensure that all staff have a level of mental health awareness and are informed of the support available.
Our comprehensive menopause support guide, produced in partnership with Peppy, is designed to help individuals and firms access the support they need, with information, advice and further resources to explore.
Consult the experts for more information on how you can improve the wellbeing of your staff. Here are some excellent resources for firms wishing to improve the mental wellbeing of their staff:
We will keep our members updated on the progress of this project over the next few months. If you have used, or are aware of, other good resources, please let us know. Lawscot Wellbeing is about collaboration and we appreciate your contributions.
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Lawscot Wellbeing
Leading emotional wellbeing for Scottish solicitors and their employees across Scotland, England and Wales and beyond.
- Seeking help
- Maintaining your emotional wellbeing
- How to support someone
- Positive employment practices
- Concerned about a client
- Get involved
- LawCare
- Parents in the profession
- Financial wellbeing and support
- Wellbeing during the coronavirus outbreak
- Our research into the status of mental health stigma and discrimination in the Scottish legal profession
- Wellbeing webinars, modules and courses