3 Ways to Offer Mental Health Days to Your Employees
Burnout among employees is hitting new highs after more than a year of remote work.
One way to help your employees battle burnout is by offering mental health days–days taken off of work specifically for self-care. But offering mental health days can be approached in a variety of ways, so it’s important to find the approach that best suits your company.
Here are three ways you can implement mental health days — as well as caution to take with each approach.
Make wellbeing a valid use for a sick day
When employees need a mental health day that isn’t company-approved, they often call in sick. But forcing employees to fake an illness exacerbates the already significant stigma around mental health. The easiest way to implement mental days is to simply formalize mental health as an approved use of allocated sick days.
Alternatively, you can require employees to use their full allocation of vacation time, not only creating the opportunity for self-care but eliminating the pressure some employees feel to pass up their time off.
What you can do: In addition to changing company policy, make sure that policy is well communicated to your team.
What to watch out for: If taking time for self-care means giving up a limited amount of vacation time or sick days, employees may be reluctant to take the mental health days that they need.
Let team leaders grant mental days for employees
Give your managers the power to grant their team time off for mental wellbeing days. Managers can check in with their teams and grant time off that doesn’t count against vacation or sick days.
What you can do:
This approach only works when supported by corporate culture like it is at Lucas Group. For example, halfway through a recent Monday morning, I realized I needed to take the remainder of the day for myself. I drove to the beach and basked in the glow of the sun and ocean, sipping on a coffee as I took the view in.
The support I felt from my organization was heartwarming. Two Lucas Group leaders reached out to me directly to ask if there was anything I needed. They didn’t bombard me with questions; they simply offered their support or to find support, which was incredibly empowering.
What to watch out for: Leaving mental health days up to manager discretion means that they are likely to be granted unevenly across the organization. Some managers may need to be checked on to ensure they are exercising good judgement.
Offer company-wide days off
Some people may be hesitant to admit how they’re feeling or that they need a break. In those cases, company-wide mental health days may be a good option.
What you can do: Designate two or three days each year for employees to take off. Encourage them to treat themselves to some “me” time during those days. That might be handling an errand or doing some chores around the house, practicing meditation or relaxation techniques, or spending time with family. Encourage employees to do things that will leave them feeling better physically and emotionally.
You can also lay a foundation for building wellbeing habits. For example, suggest that your employees take time for lunch and breaks—getting outside offers ample benefits, like improving your mood and focus and helping you heal more quickly—and to shut down at the end of the day.
What to watch out for: Mandating company-wide days is a wonderful gesture that can boost overall morale but it may not alleviate individual issues. The impersonalized timing means employees aren’t getting the time off when they need it most.
These methods offer their unique pros and cons, but they all shine a light on mental health. And that’s progress that we should continue working toward.