Don’t become the next social media wellbeing lampoon
Don’t become the next social media wellbeing lampoon
A new trend has seen more staff using satirical posts to highlight what they see as feeble attempts to support employee wellbeing.
In one viral post on TikTok, ‘HR in 2022’ an English comic pretends to be an HR professional explaining how important mental health is for the company, inter-cut with shots of struggling employees. Staff come up with ideas around reducing workloads and four-day working weeks, but are instead signposted to a take part in a lunchtime webinar.
Another series of viral posts came from a US employee forced to live in their office cubicle because of the cost of living crisis and lack of practical support.
Box ticked
The concerns about box-ticking approaches to mental health have showed themselves in a number of research studies. A survey by Headspace Health showed that while 25% of UK staff had missed at least a week of work due to mental health issues, two-thirds still felt their employer wasn’t taking steps to give them support. Just 25% said the additional focus on mental health brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic had led to anything long-term.
“I am struck by how often managers offer every support possible, with the exception of anything that will actually solve the problem,” said Terence Robson, Deputy Head of the COVID-19 Team at the Ministry of Defence.
Fair focus
“With the combination of the cost of living crisis and more staff having to on extra workloads due to cost-cutting and staff changes, this is no time for letting slip the focus on workplace wellbeing,” says EAPA UK chair, Eugene Farrell.
“At the same time there’s a need to understand that HR themselves aren’t immune to the difficult context we’re all living through. They’re obviously facing their own issues with workload and levels of change.
“All of this means there’s more need than ever for access to practical support, professionals who provide personalised advice on what to do next, counselling when it’s needed, and take some of the pressure away from HR.”
Don’t become the next social media wellbeing lampoon – EAPA UK