How To Cope With The Emotional Turmoil Of The Pandemic

Make employee well-being your top priority now

The pandemic is causing a historic rise in the volume and severity of mental health problems. According to a Perkbox study of 13, 271 employees 93% have faced new wellbeing challenges in 2020. The most common being feeling less connected to the company/colleagues, increased loneliness/feelings of isolation and increased financial concerns. And then there’s the added – insurmountable – pressure placed on parents who are juggling homeschool (with many schools recently announcing a move to a fully remote fall experience), work, childcare and the uncertainty around workplace re-openings.
 

When humans are threatened they fight or flee. Employees want and need reassurance that their companies will put their wellbeing first whenever possible, especially in difficult times. Here are some strategies that leaders can consider in helping employees, including themselves, better cope with the emotional turmoil of the pandemic.

Make Employee Well-Being Your Top Priority Now

In this time of the pandemic, mental health IS health; it is foundational to overall wellbeing. Given the magnitude of the shock and the challenges that this crisis represents, companies must consider the full breadth of their employees’ needs as people. Quarantining and social distancing have meant that people have lost the very support systems and coping mechanisms that would otherwise have helped them weather the storm – both with friends/family and colleagues. Leaders need to find ways to initiate forums for connecting with one another (virtually or physically, from six feet away) with empathy and compassion as they continue to adapt to this new normal.

Get Comfortable With Discussing Mental Health – and Modeling Wellbeing Actions

Mental health has long been a taboo topic in our society. So, leaders or employers may have not known how to address mental health up until now.  However, we are starting to evolve and recognize the importance of talking about and sharing these types of human experiences and supporting the whole employee.

Change the way the conversation happens with employees by simply making it OK to address the issue and then, model the behavior you are seeking. If you are telling people to fully unplug during vacation or take time out of the day to exercise or meditate, do these things, too. Don’t only push people to your EAP, but support them directly during this time, encourage openness, make your own wellbeing a priority, and ask your managers to lead with empathy.

Broaden Your Organization’s Definition of Well-Being

It’s important to take a holistic approach to wellbeing, supporting the physical, mental, social, and even financial, the health of workers. One way that many companies have taken steps in this space is by expanding their mental health benefits. These include changes in employee assistance programs, free counseling sessions, free or discounts on mental health apps, well-being coaching sessions, webinars on managing stress, and more virtual service options like remote yoga/exercise classes. Holistic wellbeing is not only crucial for employees – it is essential for the health of the business. A recent WHO-led study estimates that depression and anxiety disorders cost the global economy US$ 1 trillion each year in lost productivity.

If You Don’t Have a Formal Wellbeing Program in Place, Consider Creating One

Now, more than ever, it’s imperative to ensure that the people in your organization have the appropriate well-being support. To employees, especially those under 35, a focus on well-being is an expectation rather than a perk. Just as the pandemic has forced the rapid adoption of remote working, it is forcing us to look at a total employee experience strategy that integrates behavioral and physical health, along with other skill and talent management areas. If you do have one, audit to see what’s working and what’s not.

Effective training is critical to making the program is a success. Ensure you share the breadth of free training that exists today in the health and wellness space that employees can take advantage of online. Use internal training and webinars to tackle mental health topics such as anxiety, balancing work and life, homeschooling, and staying connected while physical distancing. And finally, encourage employees to continue to focus on skills training for their own career development and growth.

Communicate – Over and Over and Over Again

Remind employees about your offer, and let them know you’re always looking at ways to strengthen the program. Clarity is the best form of empathy so lead with transparency; it helps with the uncertainty in every part of your employees’ lives right now. Especially while working from home, be prescriptive and transparent about communication and collaboration norms. Make sure you are taking the pulse of employees often and including their feedback in your wellbeing offering. 

Take a Refreshed Look at How Your Company Approaches Flexibility

Remote work was the first adjustment many companies had to make during this pandemic, and now reboarding is well underway for some back into an office environment.  This has created increased anxiety for employees who continue to have concerns around their own health, safety, emotional exhaustion and self- care. Look at your approach to flexibility and consider inclusions of options such as: 
 

• Offer (or continue to offer) flexed hours for parents who are still without childcare 
• Allow and evangelize “recharging hours” - ie, three hours per week to step away from the computer and recharge or take care of personal matters, separate from traditional PTO time.  At Peppercomm, we call this “gone fishing” time. 
• Give employees the autonomy to self- manage PTO, controlling their time off as long as their productivity and accountability remain intact.

Get Managers Actively Involved

People managers will need to take greater responsibility for employees’ well-being. This includes familiarizing themselves with the warning signs of emotional distress, factoring more time into their days for checking in with staff, helping team members understand what is and isn’t within their control, and learning how to be flexible and agile in addressing real-time issues.  Make sure they have the tools, resources and training to encourage well-being – and to listen to ideas and feedback.  

Call in the Experts

You have 1000 priorities right now; let the experts help design your wellness program – from EAP providers to trauma counselors to office design experts. Know any comedians? Create a comedy-based culture, which is great for relieving stress and strengthening bonds with fellow employees.

If this was easy, we would not be where we are with mental health significantly on the rise. Creating an effective wellbeing program is a huge long-term commitment, not a tick-box exercise. But it’s never too late to get started, even if you begin by reviewing where you are today and where you want/need to be. The key is to not get too comfortable (especially when things return to ‘normal’) and be willing to flex, because what’s working today, may not tomorrow.  Stay agile, review results often, adjust as needed and, most importantly, investigate the impact it’s having on people’s lives, including your own.

	Tara Lilien is Chief Talent Officer at Peppercomm.  Visit www.peppercomm.com Connect Tara Lilien Follow @Peppercomm
	Courtney Ellul is a Partner at Peppercomm. Connect Courtney Ellul Follow @EllulCourtney