Mental illness costs Australian workplaces $4.7 billion in absenteeism, $1.6 billion in presenteeism and $146 million in compensation claims per year. The MHFA Skilled Workplace Program was developed for businesses that take mental health seriously and attempt to entrench it into their organisational culture.

Beyond investing in employees to undertake MHFA skills training, this includes commitment to embedding the program; through actions like senior leadership support, relevant policies, supporting Mental Health First Aid Officers and continuous improvement.

There are three tiers (bronze, silver and gold) which are based on how much the organisation has done. Workplaces can apply online anytime, and recognition lasts for two years.

To be recognised, workplaces must achieve two criteria:

The minimum percentage of staff trained within the last three years; and

The minimum number of “actions” completed, which demonstrates the commitment to MHFA in your workplace. “Actions” include leadership, commitment and engagement, MHFA officers and more!

View the MHFA Skilled Workplace criteria pdf for more information.

Apart from the knowledge that you are helping to create a safer and healthier workplace, you will receive a certificate, a digital badge that you can feature on your website, and your company logo will be featured on the MHFA Australia page for public recognition.

Just like appointing traditional first aid officers, many organisations choose to appoint accredited Mental Health First Aiders to the role of Mental Health First Aid officer within the workplace. The role of Mental Health First Aid Officers is to:

• Provide mental health first aid within their worksite; and
• Escalate any matters in a prompt and appropriate fashion according to relevant organisational policy and procedures.

Most professionals can claim attendance at a MHFA course for Continuing Professional Development (CPD) with their industry body. Historically, the standard Mental Health First Aid Course has been endorsed for CPD points for a number of professions, however, the CPD program is currently under review as many professional bodies expect workers to self-claim CPD that they undertake. In the instances of auditing, you can provide certification as documentation on the relevance to your work.