The Black Dog Institute has agreed to partner with the NSW Government in a program to provide mental health skills training to regionally-based workers.
Minister for Better Regulation, Matt Kean, said the training to employees and owner operators from small to medium-sized businesses would help build strategies and the capability to proactively manage their mental health and support others in the workplace.
“This program is designed to raise awareness in the community of the prevalence of mental illness, and how mental health issues may manifest in the workplace,” Mr Kean said.
“It’s a big problem, but addressing it can improve workers’ lives and increase productivity in the workplace.
“It forms part of the NSW Mentally Healthy Workplaces Strategy which has a target of more than 90,000 NSW businesses taking effective action to create mentally healthy workplaces by 2022.”
Mr Kean said the initial phase of the program would target around 5,000 workers completing face to face and e-module training by the end of November 2019.
“With the support of the services provider, the Black Dog Institute, we will roll out this training in rural and regional areas with more than 160 workshops,” Mr Kean said.
“We will also be targeting workers in high-risk industries including the professional, scientific and technical services sector, information media/telecommunications sector, transport, postal and warehousing sector and the manufacturing sector.”
The NSW Mentally Healthy Workplaces Strategy 2018-2022 was developed in consultation with workers, academics, advocates, and industry and worker representatives,” Mr Kean said. For more information on the Strategy, visit the SafeWork website or call 13 10 50.