If you are in distress, please contact your nearest distress centre. If it is an emergency, call 9-1-1 or go to your local emergency department
Workplaces can play an essential part in maintaining positive mental health. They can give people the opportunity to feel productive and be a strong contributor to employee wellbeing. Yet it can also be a stressful environment that contributes to the rise of mental health problems and illnesses. No workplace is immune from these risks and we cannot afford to limit our definition of occupational health and safety to only the physical.
With most adults spending more of their waking hours at work than anywhere else, addressing issues of mental health at work is vitally important for all people in Canada. Seventy per cent of Canadian employees are concerned about the psychological health and safety of their workplace, and 14 per cent don’t think theirs is healthy or safe at all. Such workplaces can take a detrimental personal toll as well as contribute to staggering economic costs.
About 30 per cent of short- and long-term disability claims in Canada are attributed to mental health problems and illnesses. The total cost from mental health problems to the Canadian economy exceeds $50 billion annually. In 2011, mental health problems and illnesses among working adults in Canada cost employers more than $6 billion in lost productivity from absenteeism, presenteeism and turnover.
The Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC) is committed to helping employers create and maintain mentally healthy workplaces by providing the tools, information, and support needed to ensure that every person in Canada can go to work knowing their organization recognizes the importance of psychological health and safety in the workplace.
The National Standard of Canada for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace (the Standard)
A voluntary set of guidelines, tools, and resources to guide organizations in promoting mental health and preventing psychological harm at work.
Watch this video to learn more about the Standard and why it is important to take action today.
Supporting the implementation of the Standard – In all industries
Supporting the implementation of the Standard – In healthcare settings
Post-secondary students Standard
The MHCC is embarking in a two-year project to develop a National Standard on Psychological Health and Safety for post-secondary students. Get involved!
Training tools
Free Monthly webinars on workplace mental health promotion
Learn more about our monthly webinar series created specifically to discuss psychological health & safety in the workplace.
The newly released white paper that helps to shed light on understanding mental health, mental illness, and their impacts in the workplace based on a recent survey that Morneau Shepell undertook in partnership the Globe and Mail.
The Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC) created a number of resources to support all employers in creating and maintaining mentally healthy workplaces. Click on the links below for more information.