Managers today have the toolsneeded to reduce employee stress, create a supportive workenvironment, and build company-wide initiatives to increaseadoption of supportive mental health services. (Photo:Shutterstock)

Stress is a killer—of people and of productivity.

The proof is manifold. Today, half of the 550 million workingdays that employers lose every year from absenteeism are driven bystress-related issues. The Anxiety and Depression Association ofAmerica said recently that 40 percent of employeesexperience a consistent level of stress or excessive anxiety.Meanwhile, the Mind the Workplace report found that81 percent of employees with stress are also dealing withwork-family issues and a 63 percent increase in mental health and behavioral problems.

To be sure, employers—especially HR professionals—arewell-situated to help stem this tide and, in the process, burnishtheir company's reputation as an employer of choice, reduce itsoverall health care spend, and do the right thing for its employeesand their families.

Related: Employees quit when mental health issues aren'taddressed

At the outset, it's important to recognize that stress is asubstantial health risk and a long-term threat that targets(however unintentionally) colleagues, saps overall teamperformance, and opens the door for competitors to raid qualitytalent looking for a change. In other words, good mental healthfitness is absolutely a key performance indicator for theorganization.

To improve morale, empower employees to recognize their value,and increase retention, it's essential to develop a workplaceculture that prioritizes mental health practices. Drawing on DoctorOn Demand's national behavioral health care practice, we haveidentified the following key initiatives that companies can put inplace:

Tone at the top

Not surprisingly, high performers are reluctant to voice a needfor help, much less a need for mental health. To guide them toaction, it's abundantly clear that the creation of a supportiveatmosphere — blessed by company leadership — is a necessaryprerequisite.

Educate employees about their assistance options

Step one is to learn what the employee health plan covers. Thiscould include free (or discounted) therapy, meetings with onsitecounselor group therapy, among other benefits. The inclusion of avirtual care offering that allows employees to access behavioralhealth care in the privacy of their own home is key. Make sureemployees are in the know and schedule regular annual meetings todiscuss mental health benefits.

It's also important to take an integrated approach indiscussions about the company's physical and mental healthofferings, and find ways to educate coworkers about the breadth ofservices that are available. For example, the Journal ofOccupational and Environmental Medicine found that the followingapproach helped improve workplace conditions and overall mentalhealth for employees, “(1) define health more broadly than justtreatment of physical ailments, with special emphasis on mentalhealth; (2) tie improvements in individual, organizational, andcommunity health to the company's business goals; (3) leverage datafrom an integrated data warehouse to quantitatively demonstrateprogram impact as well as progress; and (4) in an ongoing andstrategic fashion, communicate leadership commitment toestablishing and sustaining a culture of health.”

Create quarterly mental health initiatives

Key to the success of such a long-term initiative is thecommitment to keep it fresh–and therefore in front of employees. Ittakes time to build the trust necessary for employees to trulybelieve that they can access such benefits without penalty. Pairedwith physical health improvement efforts from hosting weeklycompany yoga sessions to company walks, building such momentum willhelp to propel adoption of this benefit forward.

From a management perspective, measure outcomes such asabsenteeism and productivity, and evaluate the effectiveness ofeach program element regularly, at six month intervals. As resultsbecome apparent, continue to customize the program offerings — andhow they are shared with employees.

Foster a culture of recognition and transparency

In the employee handbook and other employee materials,demonstrate a commitment to hearing employee grievances andencourage employees to discuss their issues openly with theirmanagers. At the same time, public recognition has the powerfulability to support employees and serve as a key building block in alarger program to support mental health. Rewards and recognition ofthe valuable work employees do will, over time, be an importantcontributor.

Train managers to be supportive

Managers are on the front lines every day. As such, with theright training they are positioned for critical early interventionand can solve problems and resolve issues when they are small, andbefore they turn into big ones. Helping managers recognize whennegative employee behavior might be a result of mental healthissues and arming them with the tools to mitigate workplace stress,is especially helpful.

Workplace stress is never going to go away. With that in mind,managers today have the tools needed to reduce employee stress,create a supportive work environment, and build company-wideinitiatives to increase adoption of supportive mental healthservices. In doing so, engaged employers will boost morale, andhelp secure the company's valuable talent. Ultimately, this is achallenge that we cannot fail to meet: the consequences are toosteep and the rewards too great to ignore.

Hill Ferguson is CEO of Doctor OnDemand. 

Read more: 

• Progress in the fight against mental health stigma,but more work to be done
• Employers recognize mental health as good businessstrategy, come up short on health strategy
• New mothers' untreated mental health issues costbillions