FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Statement from Rob Halpin, Executive Director of Prevention Link
(TORONTO, ON) ─ “As Canadians recognize Bell Let’s Talk Day, on January 25, Prevention Link is pleased to announce the launch of a series of mental health workshops, aimed at opening the conversation around mental health challenges in workplaces across Ontario, beginning this Spring.
“Mental illness is a leading cause of disability in Canada. In fact, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) notes that the burden of mental illness and addiction in Ontario is 1.5 times higher than all cancers put together and more than seven times that of all infectious diseases.
“We have long recognized that mental illness is a leading cause of workplace disability in Ontario. The ho
pe with our upcoming mental health workshops is to educate Ontario workers on the basics, including the language used to describe mental illnesses in the workplace and current facts of mental illness that will enable participants to better dismantle stigma in their respective workplaces.
“Stigma is notably among the leading reasons that discourages many Ontarians from talking about mental illness in the workplace. In fact, the most recent statistics reveal:
- 64 per cent of Ontario workers would be concerned about how work would be affected if a colleague had a mental illness.
- 39 per cent of Ontario workers indicate that they would not tell their managers if they were experiencing a mental health problem.
- 40 per cent of respondents to a 2016 survey agreed they have experienced feelings of anxiety or depression but never sought medical help for it.
“It is alarming that approximately 90 per cent of adults with serious mental illness are unemployed because the prevalence of discrimination prevents them from finding meaningful employment or returning to work. Prevention Link stands in solidarity with working Ontarians in bringing awareness about mental health in the workplace.
“Prevention Link’s first round of mental health workshops will be held in Toronto, Ottawa, London and Sudbury.
“If you or a co-worker are challenged with a mental health concern at work, visit The Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers (OHCOW) for more information and help today!”
Prevention Link, which is supported by the Ontario Ministry of Labour’s Prevention Office and governed by the Ontario Federation of Labour’s Executive Committee, is the leading provider of training and advisory support on secondary prevention of workplace injury in the province. For information, visit preventionlink.ca and follow @PreventionLink on Facebook and Twitter.
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For further information:
Ogho Ikhalo & Anastasia Kemp
Prevention Link
Communications
416-443-7654
oikhalo@preventionlink.ca
sf/cope343