3 Workplace Adjustments to Enhance Wellbeing
By creating a working environment in which individuals feel safe and comfortable to disclose mental health conditions to their employer, we have observed a more content workforce. When an individual discloses a mental health condition, employers should take steps to make reasonable adjustments for that individual, making life a little easier at work. This in turn ensures you’re setting up the individual for success and helps to retain them. They feel valued, listened to and comfortable in their working environment.
Reasonable adjustment examples:
Adjusting start and finish times depending on medication side-effects.
E.g., some medication can make an individual sleepy or hard to wake up in the morning. Scheduling them with a later start time would be a reasonable adjustment.
Consider changing the physical work environment if you are able.
E.g., if you have an individual who is affected by overstimulation, move them to a quieter bar / part of the restaurant etc where they have an increased chance to enjoy their work.
Review communication methods, style, and frequency to adjust for anxiety.
E.g., receiving spontaneous calls and off-shift messages on personal phones can trigger anxiety. Creating a communication channel just for work, such as Slack, Teams or Workplace Chat, and setting clear boundaries on when contact should be made, and responded to, sends a clear message that the employer respects an individuals’ time, removing that potential trigger for anxiety.
These tips were included in Code Hospitality’s Happiness in Hospitality Report 2023, sponsored by Toast. You can download the report here.