Office of Conflict Resolution Hosts Panel on Emotional Problems in the Workplace
We have an unfortunate tendency to fear, ignore or misunderstand problems with emotions or mental health, especially in the workplace. HRA is working to change that perception and promote a healthy working environment for our staff. On Tuesday, January 12, managers and supervisors from across the agency gathered for a panel discussion on how best to address emotional problems in the workplace hosted by HRA’s Office of Conflict Resolution.
Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio, Vice President, Health and Wellness, at Prudential and the event’s keynote speaker, focused on the importance of ending stigma and having the willingness to engage with employees when you see them having difficulty or presenting warning signs.
“One in five Americans has a mental illness,” said Mr. Dolan-Del Vecchio. “Treatment brings positive results to roughly 80% of those who seek it, but only 33 percent seek treatment. Many people are afraid to acknowledge their problems and ask for help because they’re afraid they will face negative consequences, but we need to remember that, paraphrasing what I’ve heard Patrick Kennedy say, illnesses like depression and addiction are problems of chemistry, not character. There should be no more stigmas attached to mental illness than there is to diabetes and heart disease.”
The event featured a panel discussion with experts in dealing with mental health and employment issues from inside and outside of HRA, including Wendy Brennan, Executive Director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness; Kevin J. Bulger, director of the NYC Employee Assistance Program; Stephanie Kleinberg, Assistant Director of DC37’s Personal Service Unit and a Licensed Clinical Social Worker; Dr. Paul A. Kurzman, Professor at the Hunter College School of Social Work; Michael J. Laidlaw, Executive Deputy Commissioner of HRA’s Office of Staff Resources; Paul Ligresti, Associate General Counsel from HRA’s Office of Legal Affairs Employment Law Unit; Dinorah Nunez-White, director of HRA’s Employee Discipline Unit; and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio. The panel was moderated by Stephen Dickerson, Director of the Office of Conflict Resolution.
Panelists focused on the importance of both being compassionate to a worker’s emotions and proactive with getting involved before problems become severe. It is important for managers and supervisors to encourage a supportive environment where employees feel comfortable sharing what they may be going through and seeking help. It is also vitally important to use resources like HRA’s Office of Conflict Resolution or the Employee Assistance Program, and avoid the tendency to armchair diagnose an employee’s problems, or worse, deny they are problems at all.
“If someone was having a heart attack, you’d help them,” said Kevin Bulger, director of the NYC Employee Assistance Program. “If someone is crying at their desk, you should help them too.”
When confronted with hostility, intense emotions and other behaviors that could be signs of emotional problems, many people withdraw and avoid conflict, but the panelists agreed it was important to intervene and not enable employees that could be endangering themselves or others.
“Enabling troubling workplace behavior is never advisable. In fact, it can be life threatening,” said Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio of Prudential. “Don’t back off or cut slack. Instead use the consultative resources available to you as a manager of people—your Office of Conflict Resolution and EAP as prime examples— to help you craft the most effective response to complex workplace situations. Keep in mind that everybody’s first performance expectation is to behave in a way that’s consistently safe, civil, and respectful toward others. Hold team members accountable for meeting their performance expectations and also remind them of the supportive resources they have available. Do this with kindness and conviction. When it comes to addiction, which sometimes lies behind a workplace performance problem, you will never help an employee by looking the other way. Facing consequences at work can be the wake-up call that finally gets them to accept treatment. You may actually save someone’s life by firing them.”
“We want to change the conversation on how we deal with emotional problems,” said OSR Executive Deputy Commissioner Michael Laidlaw. “We want to play an active role and provide employees and managers with the tools they need to address these issues.”
September 19, 2018