<p>Shutting out the mentally ill at work is akin to employers “turning their back on enormous talent and potential”, said Trevor Phillips, chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), at a speech for the Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health. <p/>
<p> According to the EHRC head, employers need to “radically rethink” their employment practices, after revealing that less than 40% of employers said they would be willing to hire someone with a mental health condition. <p/>
<p> He said: “We need to approach the issue of mental health at work not just from the point of view of a medical strategy. We also need an equality strategy. Individual employers need to be aware of the reasonable adjustments they could make to the workplace so that it is feasible for people with mental health issues to stay in employment.”<p/>
<p> Angela Greatley, chief executive of the Sainsbury centre for Mental Health, said: “Mental distress is a fact of life. It can affect any of us at any time. Ignoring mental ill-health at work is a false economy. Mental ill-health costs UK businesses £1,000 a year for every person they employ. Instead of running away from it, employers need to embrace the issue and create workplaces that promote mental wellbeing.”<p/>
