Mental health at work for employers

An Easy Read guide about how you can make your workplace safe and healthy for everyone. 

Pictogram man's brain health support human on laptop

In this guide, we talk about how you can support your mental health at work.

A person with their thoughts and feelings

Your mental health is about how you:

  • think and feel about yourself
  • deal with things in your life
  • manage your feelings.
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On this page

Why it’s important to support mental health at work

4 people holding thumbs up signal

A workplace that supports mental health is good for everyone.

Pictogram of office building blue and red door

A workplace is any place you might work, such as:

  • an office
Pictogram of factory building blue and red door and van outside
  • a factory
Pictogram of shop blue and red sign
  • a shop
Pictogram of two people customer service

a service.

Scales of justice man and women shaking hands

Everyone has the right to a safe and healthy workplace.

Rights are rules about how people must treat you:

  • fairly
  • equally.
Pictogram of people putting their hands up and brain health sign

Everyone has a role to make sure their workplace supports mental health.

pictogram employer and employee blue with red tie and badge

This includes:

  • workers
  • employers.

An employer is a person who hires other people to work for them.

What employers need to do

A healthy and safe workplace

Employers need to make sure the workplace is safe and healthy for workers.

Checking a person's mental health

This means employers need to check the workplace to find out what could affect a worker’s mental health.

A computer showing how to look for dangers and fix them

It also means that employers need to fix any problems they find.

Learn more about how to find these problems and how to manage them on the WorkSafe NSW website.

An assertive person protecting another person

Employers need to protect workers from discrimination in the workplace.

This includes discrimination because of someone’s mental health.

A symbol showing something can not be discussed with other people

Employers cannot tell anyone else about a worker’s mental health unless they say it’s okay.

A person reviewing a document looking for what can be changed

Employers need to look at reasonable adjustments for workers who need support to keep working.

A worker making a plan before returning to work

Employers need to have a plan that supports people to come back to work after they have experienced mental illness.

A person sitting at a desk in front of a laptop.

Find out more about return to work programs on the SafeWork NSW website.

A hand writing down injuries

Employers need to keep a record of all the injuries that happen in the workplace.

This includes an injury that affected someone’s mental health.

Your rights as an employer

A symbol that there is a problem and a symbol showing a discussion of changes

Employers have the right to ask workers about their mental health if:

  • it is affecting their work
  • they have asked for reasonable adjustments.
A request being refused

Employers have the right not to make changes in the workplace if they are not reasonable.

A worker is making a request which is being denied because it is too expensive

For example, if the changes:

  • cost a lot of money
  • stop other people from doing their job.
A workplace change being refused

Employers have the right not to make changes in the workplace if they will stop a worker from doing their job.

Two people having a discussion in a workplace

Employers must clearly explain to workers why they cannot make these changes to the workplace.

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