Table of Contents
Introduction
1. Key Mental Health Laws and Regulations in the Workplace
1.1. Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
1.2. Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAE)
1.3. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOE)
2. Developing Mental Health Policies in the Workplace
2.1. Mental Health Leave and Policies
2.2. Stress Management Programs
2.3. Workload Management
Winding Up

Introduction
In this ever-evolving, fast-paced environment, organizations are more focused on staying ahead of the competition and pay little attention to their employees’ mental well-being. This neglect of employees’ mental well-being eventually leads to a decrease in productivity, more absenteeism, and serious work injuries or accidents among employees.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 15% of working-age adults were estimated to have a mental disorder in 2019, and the statistics have rapidly grown over the years. It is observed that employees are often triggered by working conditions and psychosocial risk factors that can negatively affect their mental health.
Therefore, to curb these challenges, HR professionals must create necessary workplace policies to support employees’ mental health and promote a healthy workplace culture.
In today’s exclusive HRTech Cube, we will uncover the workplace’s mental health laws and regulations and how HR can develop mental health policies efficiently.

1. Key Mental Health Laws and Regulations in the Workplace
Workplace mental health policies are an essential implementation that has the potential to control measures to prevent mental injury in the workplace and support employees’ recovery.
However, before developing any workplace policies or strategies, HR professionals must become familiar with the diverse laws and regulations. These government-mandated laws and regulations will provide clear rules and guidance on how a business or organization manages employee mental health.

Let’s take a quick glimpse at the laws and regulations that HR professionals and decision-makers need to follow before developing any workplace policies or strategies related to employees’ mental health.

1.1. Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was passed in 1990 and has continued to profoundly shape day-to-day work culture. Within this act are two primary regulations, which have numerous components to help employees and decision-makers create a functional and welcoming working environment. The first regulation has to do with anti-discrimination. The second regulation focuses on what is referred to as reasonable accommodations.

1.2. Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAE)
Another law related to mental health that dominates at work is the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, which demands that health insurance plans provide coverage for mental health and substance use disorders that are equivalent to physical health conditions.

1.3. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOE)
Another law that must be discussed within the policies of the workplace is the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission because this federal law makes it unlawful for an employer to discriminate against employees based on various aspects, such as mental health conditions.

It is by law that an employee who experiences discrimination based on their mental health condition is allowed to file a charge with the EEOC.

2. Developing Mental Health Policies in the Workplace

Now that we have reviewed a few of the laws and regulations, let’s take a quick look at the pillar pointers that HR professionals can consider while developing mental health policies.

2.1. Mental Health Leave and Policies
The first strategy that HR professionals and decision-makers must focus on is standardizing leaves for employees’s mental health and including them as a part of the leave policies.
Many companies across the globe have started following this strategy by destigmatizing employee mental health concerns and treating them similarly to any physical health issues.

This has allowed employees to treat their mental health and recharge themselves for better productivity in the long run.

2.2. Stress Management Programs
Some job roles generate more stress than others, which tends to affect employee mental health disproportionately. To curb these issues, HR professionals and mental physicians need to carry out stress investigations for various roles.

Through this analysis, the roles that induce more stress than others should have proper stress management programs. HR professionals can conduct these stress relief programs by initiating stress reduction workshops, mindfulness sessions, and relaxation techniques that will help employees manage their stress and anxiety during heavy workloads.

2.3. Workload Management

Developing mental health policies can also regulate the amount of workload an employee takes on every day. HR professionals and decision-makers should analyze each employee’s tolerance levels and redistribute tasks among the team rather than pressuring a single employee to complete the task on a predetermined deadline.
The initiative of proper workload management can help avoid the tendency toward early burnout and mental stress and also help in maintaining a healthy workplace.

Winding Up
With rising numbers registering heightened stress, anxiety, and depression in the workplace, pressure is on employers to guarantee the mental and physical safety of their employees. Therefore, the above policies can assist HR professionals and decision-makers in building a mental health-positive workplace that will offer employees flexible hours, job redesign, and positive workplace dynamics and also support employees who are suffering from mental health issues.