Mental health in industry

Abstract

A survay is given of various mental health aspects in industry: absenteeism, emotional stress, neurosis, alcoholism, accident proneness, and difficulties in rehabilitation. Mental illness is, of course, not confined to the industrial environment, but if one accepts the important role which work plays in man's life, it cannot be denied that many areas in the work situation exist where excessive mental stress can be created with detrimental effects, not only to the persons involved, but also to their employers. Various work conditions that may influence mental health are mentioned. The author concludes that mental health in industry depends on those who work with people, that the employer and the employee have a common interest in the need for better health, that a higher degree of efficiency is, in fact, a byproduct of mental well being, and that the future depends on the awareness and acceptance of the following needs: well planned training programs in the field of mental health requirements for all levels of management; preventive mental health education for people in all types of employment; closer cooperation between management, the medical profession and mental health workers; more trained psychiatric personnel and a greater consciousness on the part of existing personnel of industry's special problems and requirements; further investigation and research into mental health problems at work, with particular reference to the different racial groups in South Africa; and finally, the urgency in meeting these needs to reduce the serious handicap of an industry faced with an endemic shortage of manpower.