The UK's Policy Liaison Group for Workplace Wellbeing have released their guidance for policy makers and employers on the duty of care on staff. This guidance includes suggestions for small employers (under 50 employees) and medium employers (up to 500 employees), in addition to guidance for policymakers and influencers. The document is primarily aimed at the policy makers and influencers, but contains useful ideas and suggestions for small and medium employers. It is not aimed at large organisations.
The full document can be viewed below.
The Mental Health Risk Intelligence system (MHRI) helps organisations audit themselves against published good practice, including this document.
Here's how the guidance compares to the Mental Health Risk Intelligence system:
| What is the same? | What is different? |
| All of the suggestions in the guidance are reflected in the audit. | The guidance gives suggestions rather than measurable actions. |
| The guidance recommends monitoring staff wellbeing, which the Mental Health Risk Intelligence system allows you to do. | The guidance uses nine categories that shape the conditions of a workplace: 1 - Designing Work So It Does Not Harm: Governance, Purpose and Primary Prevention 2 - Aligning Work Design With Organisational Purpose and Values 3 - Psychosocial Risk Identification and Prevention 4 - Healthy Work Design and Job Quality 5 - Worker Voice, Participation and Co-Design 6 - Inclusion, Equity and Fairness 7 - Support as Back-Up, Not Substitute 8 - Measurement, Monitoring and Learning 9 - Prevention, Not Promotion Only The Mental Health Risk Intelligence system uses a more actionable categorisation system: 1 - Environment 2 - Ethos 3 - Health and Safety 4 - Leadership 5 - Managers 6 - Staff 7 - Support 8 - Systems and Processes |
| The suggestions are for different size organisations, the Mental Health Risk Intelligence system has different requirements for small (under 50 employees), medium (under 500 employees) and large (over 500 employees) organisations. | The guidance does not cover large employers, the Mental Health Risk Intelligence system includes audit items and data streams for large organisations. |