astra domain was triggered too early. This is usually an indicator for some code in the plugin or theme running too early. Translations should be loaded at the init action or later. Please see Debugging in WordPress for more information. (This message was added in version 6.7.0.) in /home/studyfoxx/public_html/proactivetraining.com.au/news/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6121More than six months into the COVID-19 pandemic and most people are still working from home. Trainers have had to adapt, transitioning to digital platforms and making other adjustments to keep training initiatives going while the world continues to fight the pandemic. While trainers likely have considered how their audiences will experience training sessions while working from home, another aspect they should consider is the mental health of their trainees. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n This is especially important now because American workers are showing signs of continued elevated stress and anxiety due to the pandemic, according to Morneau Shepell, a leading provider of technology-enabled HR services, which has been evaluating the mental health of a representative sample of 5,000 American workers each month since before the pandemic began. This research is designed to highlight the importance of mental health and is particularly relevant to trainers because poor mental health among American workers could negatively impact the effectiveness of even the best training programs. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Workers Under Stress<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n According to results of the Morneau Shepell Mental Health Index (MHI) as of June 2020, the Mental Health Index score was -6, the same as it was for May. The score measures the improvement or decline in mental health from the pre-2020 benchmark of 75, with positive scores indicating good mental health and negative scores indicating poor mental health. On a day-to-day basis, American workers are experiencing lower optimism (-7.9) and work productivity (-6.9), with higher incidents of anxiety (-7.7), depression (-6.8), and isolation (-5.9). While there has been a modest improvement across most of these areas throughout May and June, isolation continued to grow slightly worse in June.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n As we wrestle with the desire to return to life as we knew it before the pandemic and the imperative to keep people safe and healthy, employees have expressed a number of concerns and needs as we enter into the next stage of the pandemic. For example: <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The Role of Employers When It Comes to Mental Health<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n As the fight against the Coronavirus continues, employers have become a much-needed source of information and support during this time of crisis. The Mental Health Index found a strong correlation between index scores and the individual’s view of how his or her employer managed health and safety issues during the pandemic. It shows an even stronger correlation between mental health scores and perception of how well his or her employer has been supporting the mental health of employees. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n For example, 32 percent of respondents said that their employer has been supporting employee mental health inconsistently, poorly or very poorly during the pandemic. The Mental Health Index score for this group ranged from -12.7 for those who indicated inconsistently, to <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n -14.6 for those who indicated mental health being supported poorly to -20.2 for those who indicated very poorly. In comparison, those who indicated their mental health has been supported somewhat well have a score of -5.4, with those indicating that their mental health has been supported very well have a score of 3.5. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Key Takeaways for Trainers<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Since trainers are also going through much of the same stress and anxiety over the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s not difficult to empathize with trainees, whose mental health could be suffering. Trainers are experts at engaging audiences, starting with where audiences are and where they are coming from. Each of us needs to pay close attention to signs of mental health stress among employees so we can get them additional help and support when needed.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Here are some recommendations for how your training organization can more fully support the mental health needs of employees:<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n
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