How our new YES Workshops can make a difference to young workers’ mental health
Natalie Treacher, one of our Workplace Consultants, delivers the YES Workshops.
She says: “The workplace can be a very lonely place for young people. There are many factors that can add to their stress, for example living in accommodation with people they don’t know or expectations around having to get a well-paid job – especially with the current cost of living. It’s also different post-Covid, with many young people joining the workplace online.
“The workshops enable managers to reflect on that and to empathise with young people starting work now, particularly if they are struggling with their mental health.”
“The wellbeing of young people is certainly a concern. One in four has chosen to leave their job in the last 12 months and 65 percent said it was due to poor mental health (Deloitte 2022).
“The YES workshops help to address this by giving managers insights into issues faced by young workers, particularly those who may be vulnerable to mental health issues. Practical tools give line managers confidence to deal with sensitive topics and help them learn how to create a mental healthy working environment.”
We created the workshops in partnership with Women and Theatre. Three young writers and performers were commissioned to undertake research with a range of young people about their experiences of mental health and the workplace.
They also spoke to managers and employers to understand their experience as we know they can find this a challenging area to navigate. Out of this came three video monologues bringing together the different voices and experiences.
Natalie says: “It’s great for me that the videos came first. It means that the workshops are around themes that young people chose first. Their voices are the stars of the show.”
About the YES workshops
Each workshop uses one of the videos as a case study for participants to discuss. One features a young man who is feeling overwhelmed at work but who doesn’t know how to raise this with his line manager and talk to him about how he is feeling. We discuss why someone new to the workplace might feel stressed at work and how to create a supportive environment where this can be raised.
The second workshop focuses on the return to work of a young employee after being off work with a mental health issue and the use of our Wellbeing Action Plan.
The final workshop uses the case study of a young teacher in crisis calling a hotline in the middle of the night and what employers can to do to create a mentally healthy workplace.
Aimed at managers of young people, the workshops are run online and last two hours each.
To find out more and to book a place on the workshops, click below.
