Right up until he passed away, Dr John Hinwood was a prolific blogger (an award-winning blogger in fact!). John’s blog’s shared musing from a rich history of experience, learnings, travel and wisdom
The Hinwood Institute is named in honour of Dr John and to continue his legacy, we’re republishing his blogs to keep his wisdom, wit and wise words alive for the world to enjoy.
You can learn more about the legacy of Dr John Hinwood HERE.
Who is Responsible for Mental Health in the Workplace?
An old practice that is still active in some quarters of the market place is, “work it till it breaks”. When you ask the person in senior management who has made the statement who or what are they referring to, they answer, “it doesn’t matter, staff or machinery”.
With depression and anxiety now the leading cause of long-term illness-related absence in the developed world, it’s vital for leaders – under work health and safety laws – to do whatever is reasonably practicable to eliminate or minimise risks to workers’ mental health. A healthy workplace is one that promotes mental health alongside physical health and encourages people to speak up and seek help.
Managing workplace stress and developing emotional resilience is a key in creating happy and very productive workplaces.
Research conducted by PwC found that for every dollar a business invests in effective mental health initiatives, it receives an average return on investment of $2.30. PwC also estimates that absenteeism resulting from poor mental health conditions costs Australian businesses $4.7 billion per year.
Research by the Institute of Stress and Performance report that stressed and unhealthy employees take nine times more sick leave in Australia, than healthy employees.
Check out the claims table below from a recent survey to see the median compensation payment made in your area of industry.
| Industry | No. of claims | Median compensation payment |
| Manufacturing | 355 | $17,500 |
| Retail Trade | 505 | $13,800 |
| Education & Training (private) | 1,065 | $20,200 |
| Real Estate, Rental & Hiring | 555 | $22,600 |
| Professional, Scientific & Tech Services | 955 | $27,100 |
Find out how much stress is impacting your personal health
Take the Stress Test — simply answer yes or no to a series of life events and discover the likelihood of adverse effects on your wellbeing.
🔍 It only takes a few minutes, but the insights could be life-changing.
How well do you roll with the punches?
How it works:
- Answer 25 simple questions
- Generate results instantly
- Receive feedback to enhance your score
Listen to the Podcast here
About the Author
Dr John Hinwood has shared the stage with Dr John Demartini, Dr Deepak Chopra, Dr Wayne Dyer, Dr Joe Dispenzia, Mark Victor Hansen and Jack Canfield (Chicken Soup for the Soul fame), Dr Bruce Lipton, Dr Masaru Emoto and others who are at the cutting edge of human behaviour and mindset change.
He has written 14 books with 4 being Amazon international best sellers. He has had papers published in academic journals and was once Captain/Coach of the Danish National Rugby Team. Dr. John’s experience as a health professional by training, successful businessman by effort and an inspiration by inclination has given him an awesome array of practical tools for success.