R U OK? Day in the workplace

R U OK? Day is 1 month away – and we wanted to take the time to chat about mental health.

Taking place Thursday, 12 September, R U OK? Day encourages all of us to stay connected, check in with one another and raise awareness for mental health.

Acknowledging R U OK? Day can help your team feel heard and supported and visibly demonstrate a commitment to wellbeing.  Whether you do something together, get some email correspondence out or simply make time to chat to your staff there’s plenty of ways to get involved. We’ve put together a few ideas to help you get started.

‍

So, how can you get your business involved with R U OK? Day?

1. Start the conversation by sending an email or set up a time to share the R U OK? Day presentation with your team.

R U OK? have put together a PowerPoint presentation template that you can share with your team that covers how to ask 'are you OK?' and how to identify signs that someone might be struggling.

There are also a number of email templates that can be used as a guide. Take a look at the resources on offer for workplaces on the R U OK? Day website.
‍

2. Bring the team together with an R U OK? Day event.

Whether it’s a morning tea, a lunch time walk ‘n’ talk, a team BBQ, or a toolbox chat there’s plenty of ways that your team can recognise the day.

Hosting an event at your workplace is a great way to bring the team together and help people feel comfortable starting the conversation.

If you can’t be together in person, consider a virtual event. Perhaps you could take part in an online breathwork activity together or set aside some time for everyone to go on a mindfulness walk wherever they are! Make sure you set aside time to check in with each other after.
‍

3. Raise awareness – hang posters, use the video call background, wear yellow, share a message card or some sweet treats!  

There’s plenty of ways to get involved that aren’t an event. You could arrange for everyone to wear yellow for the day or deck out your workplace with R U OK? Day posters. Perhaps, you’d like to give out message cards (you can use this handy template) or share some yellow themed treats or cupcakes as a reminder to check in with each other throughout the day.

For remote teams you could encourage everyone to use the R U OK? Day background for video calls or the email signature block to raise awareness.

‍

Supporting mental wellbeing in your workplace all year round

R U OK? Day is a good opportunity to remind your people of mental wellbeing supports that your business might already have in place. These could be:

• Mental health first aiders. If there are employees within your team that are trained in mental health first aid, remind your team who they are and that they’re there to offer support.  
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP). If you have an EAP it’s a good time to remind everyone how they can access the service for free confidential support (for both personal and work matters). Your EAP may be able to provide specific information or handouts that you can share about their service on R U OK? Day.

If you don’t have an EAP but it’s something you’ve been considering, get in touch with our team and we can help point you in the right direction.

Remember, you can ask “are you okay?” any day of the year.  By having regular, meaningful conversations, you build trust with your team, so if people find themselves struggling, they know they’ve got someone they can talk to.

If you want to chat about how to acknowledge R U OK? Day in your workplace or would like some help imbedding some mental health initiatives in your business get in touch – our team of resourceful humans are here!

‍