When tragedy strikes, employers need to help
When two power line technicians at Nova Scotia Power found a dead body in a river while performing routine duties, the situation could have meant long-term mental anguish for the employees.
Thankfully, the organization had recently hired a mental health worker who helped the workers through the process of dealing with the traumatic event.
Immediately after the event the workers thought they would be fine. But the next day they found they couldn’t get the image of the body out of their heads, said Barbara Meens Thistle, HR general manager for Nova Scotia Power.
“(We were) able to help them deal with that situation,” she said.
It hasn’t been the only time the company has called the mental health worker in to help.
Since the position was introduced last year, the mental health worker has helped employees deal with the deaths of co-workers to cancer and help employees who have experienced issues outside of the workplace, she said.
While not every employer will have the means or the need for a mental health staffer, every workplace should be prepared to deal with the aftermath of an emergency.
Helping workers deal with a traumatic event in the workplace is not always something employers are thinking about until a tragedy happens. But if workers see something traumatic while out on a job site or if a co-worker dies suddenly, it can be difficult for the whole staff.
“It’s surprising that a lot of companies don’t think a lot about it,” said Karen Seward, executive vice-president of marketing and business development at Morneau Shepell. “When an emergency situation comes up, it’s really how well it’s handled and how quickly decisions are made that will make the difference in how employees are able to deal with it.”
Some workplaces are more prepared for issues because they are in an industry that’s prone to it, such as banks because of the possibility of robberies, said Seward.
But she stresses it can happen in any industry.
“Unfortunately it’s something you don’t think about until it happens to you,” she said.
She advises companies to have an emergency plan in place even if a tragedy is unlikely to occur. Policies and procedures should be outlined in advance, she said.
In the event of a tragedy, the most important thing is to have a venue for employees to talk about what they are feeling. Having someone available and ready to make decisions is also essential, she said.
It’s important for employers and managers to recognize everyone will have a different reaction to a traumatic event.
“No two people will respond the same way in a situation,” said Seward.
It’s something managers should take care to recognize if something dire happens in the workplace.
“Trauma affects people differently. A trauma response does not have a specific path, you can not tell how long someone is going to take to overcome their stress reaction to the event,” said Donna Hardaker, workplace mental health specialist with the York Region Branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA).
“So what we tend to do is generalize that everyone should be better in a few months.”
At the CMHA it’s suggested managers get training to recognize if something is bothering staff, whether a trauma has taken place or not, she said.
“This takes time and it also takes a manager that has a certain amount of emotional intelligence,” she said.
The first thing workplaces have to do after a tragedy is let workers know they recognize something has happened, said Hardaker.
“Sometimes in some workplaces they don’t talk about it all because nobody knows what to say.”
Managers should meet with every employee affected by an incident and talk with them privately. The affected employee should be asked what support they need immediately after the event and in the months that follow, she said.
If there has been a tragedy and a member of the workplace team has been killed or hurt the organization should be extremely sensitive when introducing a replacement worker, said Hardaker.
“My suggestions is the team is gathered together and the issue of how are we going to get the work done is raised as a team issue,” she said.
“When employees feel heard and validated and involved they are protected from many of the stressors that can exist in a workplace particularly after a trauma.”
Hardaker stresses mental health should be treated as a priority before an emergency occurs. Organizations are generally good about physical health and safety, they should start taking mental health just as seriously, so it’s not just in the forefront after something bad happens, she said.
“Treat it exactly the same way,” she said.
Thankfully, the organization had recently hired a mental health worker who helped the workers through the process of dealing with the traumatic event.
Immediately after the event the workers thought they would be fine. But the next day they found they couldn’t get the image of the body out of their heads, said Barbara Meens Thistle, HR general manager for Nova Scotia Power.
“(We were) able to help them deal with that situation,” she said.
It hasn’t been the only time the company has called the mental health worker in to help.
Since the position was introduced last year, the mental health worker has helped employees deal with the deaths of co-workers to cancer and help employees who have experienced issues outside of the workplace, she said.
While not every employer will have the means or the need for a mental health staffer, every workplace should be prepared to deal with the aftermath of an emergency.
Helping workers deal with a traumatic event in the workplace is not always something employers are thinking about until a tragedy happens. But if workers see something traumatic while out on a job site or if a co-worker dies suddenly, it can be difficult for the whole staff.
“It’s surprising that a lot of companies don’t think a lot about it,” said Karen Seward, executive vice-president of marketing and business development at Morneau Shepell. “When an emergency situation comes up, it’s really how well it’s handled and how quickly decisions are made that will make the difference in how employees are able to deal with it.”
Some workplaces are more prepared for issues because they are in an industry that’s prone to it, such as banks because of the possibility of robberies, said Seward.
But she stresses it can happen in any industry.
“Unfortunately it’s something you don’t think about until it happens to you,” she said.
She advises companies to have an emergency plan in place even if a tragedy is unlikely to occur. Policies and procedures should be outlined in advance, she said.
In the event of a tragedy, the most important thing is to have a venue for employees to talk about what they are feeling. Having someone available and ready to make decisions is also essential, she said.
It’s important for employers and managers to recognize everyone will have a different reaction to a traumatic event.
“No two people will respond the same way in a situation,” said Seward.
It’s something managers should take care to recognize if something dire happens in the workplace.
“Trauma affects people differently. A trauma response does not have a specific path, you can not tell how long someone is going to take to overcome their stress reaction to the event,” said Donna Hardaker, workplace mental health specialist with the York Region Branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA).
“So what we tend to do is generalize that everyone should be better in a few months.”
At the CMHA it’s suggested managers get training to recognize if something is bothering staff, whether a trauma has taken place or not, she said.
“This takes time and it also takes a manager that has a certain amount of emotional intelligence,” she said.
The first thing workplaces have to do after a tragedy is let workers know they recognize something has happened, said Hardaker.
“Sometimes in some workplaces they don’t talk about it all because nobody knows what to say.”
Managers should meet with every employee affected by an incident and talk with them privately. The affected employee should be asked what support they need immediately after the event and in the months that follow, she said.
If there has been a tragedy and a member of the workplace team has been killed or hurt the organization should be extremely sensitive when introducing a replacement worker, said Hardaker.
“My suggestions is the team is gathered together and the issue of how are we going to get the work done is raised as a team issue,” she said.
“When employees feel heard and validated and involved they are protected from many of the stressors that can exist in a workplace particularly after a trauma.”
Hardaker stresses mental health should be treated as a priority before an emergency occurs. Organizations are generally good about physical health and safety, they should start taking mental health just as seriously, so it’s not just in the forefront after something bad happens, she said.
“Treat it exactly the same way,” she said.
