City officials recently encouraged the establishment or strengthening of mental health programs in workplaces under public and private sectors in the city.
Under Resolution No. 647, series of 2023, city legislators stated that mental health programs in workplaces promote work-life balance among employees as they are not just functionaries but also human beings, thus, with this, productivity and motivation among them will be higher and as a result, the workplaces will be avenues where employees can see themselves thrive in all aspects and portray positive changes.
During the Senior Citizens Officials For-A-Day (SCOFAD) session held last October 9, 2023, the SCOFAD Council adopted the proposal of Councilor Elma B Buaquen that encouraged the establishment or strengthening of mental health programs in workplaces under the public and private sectors in the city.
Republic Act (RA) 11036, otherwise known as the Mental Health Act, states that one of its objectives is to integrate strategies promoting mental health in educational institutions, the workplace and in communities.
Earlier, the Department of Labor and Employment issued Department order No. 201, series of 2020 providing guidelines for the implementation of mental health workplace policies and programs in the private sector and was supplemented in Labor Advisory No. 19, series of 2023.
The council claimed that healthy and productive people are the heart of high performing organizations and that one aspect of having this characteristic of people is their positive mental health.
Further, it added that as a responsible workplace, mental health should be recognized as an important component of a healthy workplace aside from its physical conditions.
The body asserted that protecting and promoting mental health at work is about strengthening capacities to recognize and act on mental health conditions at work apart from being able to provide a positive impact on overall health and involves actions that create living conditions and environments for people to adopt and maintain healthy lifestyle.
According to the council, a health lifestyle cannot be achieved without positive mental health.
