Workers’ Memorial Day 28 April 2008

The seminar entitled ‘Trade Union approaches to Supporting Workplace Mental Health’ was organised by the NIC-ICTU Health & Safety Committee.

The event was opened by Jimmy Kelly, Regional Secretary of Unite, Ireland, who welcomed Nigel Dodds, Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Investment, union representatives and guests and invited them to stand in silent tribute to honour all workers who died or been fatally injured at work.

Peter Bunting, Assistant General Secretary of ICTU, likened the premature death of a worker to a narrative cut short - an incomplete story. He said each statistic represents real individuals missed by families and workmates and that there needs to be a greater will to enforce legislation; more effort has been put into chasing dole cheats. He referred to the Morecombe Bay tragedy where 30 migrant Chinese workers were drowned. He said this was a foreseeable accident and ignored by the gang masters. In the early hours of the morning of this seminar, there was an accident in a chemical plant in Cobh in County Cork where yet another worker was killed

Nigel Dodds, Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Investment drew attention to the statistic that since the beginning of 2000, 10 million people have been killed at work. He compared this to the 58 million people killed in the two world wars. In N.Ireland in 2006/7 19 people were killed at work and 3,500 more needed time off work for treatment as a result of industrial injuries. The legislation, including the recent Corporate Manslaughter Act, ensures that workplace accidents will be investigated and companies and individuals prosecuted for breaches. He included mental illness as a result of stress in the workplace and he referred to the high incidence of suicides in the Province. He highlighted the importance of trade union reps working for the rights of workers and the vital role played by NIC-ICTU.

Barbara Martin, Chair of NIC-ICTU, H & S Committee, spoke of bullying and harassment in the workplace. She had worked with the bullies and the bullied and often neither party knew what was happening to them. She claimed that the loss of self-esteem as a result of being bullied is often irreversible.

Dave Parr, Disability Champion Project Leader and TUC Tutor said there are now 928 trained disability champions and their role is to represent colleagues with disabilities in the workplace and raise awareness of disabled workers rights and the responsibilities of employers and the appropriate legislation. He informed the seminar that 90% of people with mental ill health are unemployed and this can go as high as 96% with particular conditions such as schizophrenia. Disability Champions are regularly required to represent colleagues with mental illness. Looking at mental ill health in a health and safety context he posed the question ‘are people with mental health conditions a hazard to others or is the workplace a potential hazard to people’s mental health. He encouraged more reps to undertake Disability Champion Training. Click here to read Dave's speech in full.

Judy Cohoun, Director of Development, Aware Defeat Depression. Told of her own mental illness and how she was not diagnosed until her fourth bout of depression. She said unrelenting stress can lead to depression. People with depression feel they have failed, but in fact the opposite can be true and during the times when they are not depressed their output can be very productive. When overload occurs – like putting too many pebbles in a jar of water – then the depression sets in. She believes that her experience of cognitive behavioural therapy was helpful. She is heavily involved in the Mental Health First Aid course (MHFA) and advocated it for workplace reps. She is also a registered ASIST trainer (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training). Judy quoted President Clinton when speaking of mental illness ‘nothing to be ashamed of, but stigma and bias shames us all’.

Sarah Reid from the Health Promotion Agency described the Workwell Initiative which is a four-day training course aimed to equip participants with the skills and knowledge to either advise and support other organisations in creating healthy workplaces or implement a programme within their own organisation. It is based on a Canadian model and funded by Investing for Health Strategy. More information is available from c.hind@hpani.uk.

Brendan Mullan, Director of Mental Health in the Belfast Trust, from a community psychiatric nurse background, quoted the WHO report stating that mental illness is on the increase on a global scale. He said ‘there is no health without mental health’ and talked of the resilience people require to deal with day to day problems. Also, the importance of early intervention in childhood and the need for good support systems throughout our lives to help maintain sound mental health. Schools, he said, should promote good mental health through a sound education producing confident, qualified young people. He drew a distinction between mental health and mental illness, and referred to the damage to mental health caused by the increasing use of drugs and alcohol. Stress causes psychosomatic illness, and employers are often in denial regarding mental illness in their staff. He explained presenteeism where people don’t go on sick leave but remain at their post, but their productivity is poor. He advocated promoting healthy workplaces.

Patricia Campbell, Community Psychiatric Nurse in North & West Belfast has worked for many years in the community in learning disabilities and mental illness with patients across the religious and political divide. There is a very high rate of suicide in this area. She described stress as a silent killer. Workers in this field themselves require counselling and support on a planned basis. This is often not forthcoming. She stressed the importance of listening to people who have mental illness. She asked the question ‘Do you work in poor conditions? Does your employer listen to you?

This was a thought provoking seminar and the questions to the panel at the end highlighted the concerns trade unionists felt. Dave, in his presentation had made the point that a disabled colleague said she was fed up being regarded as a health and safety risk. Arguably, if the appropriate accommodations and adjustments to the workplace are put in place for a disabled worker, the health and safety risk should be addressed.

Berni McCrea
Disability Champion
Unite Disability Committee.