The three Ps of business — productivity, performance and people — have now been joined by a fourth: psychologically healthy workplaces. Everyone benefits from a workplace that is psychologically healthy: employers get a competitive edge and longer-term sustainability, and employees have greater control and increased job satisfaction.

“A psychologically healthy workplace is a workplace in which employees are engaged,” says Ann Leckie, director of human resources with Vancouver-based VanCity Savings Credit Union, Canada’s largest credit union. “They believe in their company, their work and their capability to do that work.”

According to the American Psychological Association, which presents annual awards to companies and organizations that exemplify psychologically healthy workplaces, such a workplace — regardless of its size — does more than just improve performance and productivity. It defines the organization itself.

“It’s about what’s going on in the workplace; it’s work culture. It includes what is written down and, more important, what is not written down,” says Dr. Lydia Makrides, president of Creative Wellness Solutions in Halifax.

The APA divides psychologically healthy workplace practices into five categories: employee involvement; health and safety; employee growth and development; work/life balance; and employee recognition. Programs in those areas, Makrides notes, must go beyond “lunch and learn” sessions on butting out and eating healthy foods.

VanCity, for example has won provincial and international awards for its efforts to build a psychologically healthy workplace. VanCity, which has 42 branches and more than 2,000 employees, has an employee assistance program; it uses performance-management tools and support to help employees do their jobs and to recognize their goals; and there is a profit-sharing program to reward them for achieving those goals.

In addition, however, the credit union has some very creative programs. In 2003, it was named one of the top 100 employers in the country and was cited, in particular, for its leave-of-absence policy that enabled one employee to spend 14 months in Albania volunteering as a business advisor at a small non-governmental organization.

The following year, VanCity won a Psychologically Healthy Workplace Award from the British Columbia Psychological Association for its open-door policy. The BCPA defines this as “the practice of encouraging and providing opportunities for employees to shape their work environment.”

At VanCity, that includes formal and informal processes, such as its employee advisory committee, which listens to employees’ concerns and ideas; and a “living well” council that provides online tools to help employees take responsibility for their health.

In addition, the company has an Employee Voice program that brings senior management into branches and other offices specifically to hear from employees face-to-face. “It’s a very time-intensive program,” Leckie says, “but it gives every employee access to our executive.”

Companies don’t have to be large or have extensive resources to be psychologically healthy. It’s the nature of the program that is important, not its size nor scope. The APA recommends programs that: involve employees in decision-making; build skills through training and leadership; provide flexible work arrangements; promote healthy lifestyle and behaviour choices; prevent and manage workplace stress; make employee health and safety a priority; recognize individual and team performance; offer a comprehensive health-care benefits package that includes access to mental health services.

The effort pays off — literally. A 2002 study conducted by Watson Wyatt Worldwide documents the link between better people management and better financial performance. A report from the Journal of Occupational Health and Medicine shows health-care expenditures are almost 50% greater for U.S. workers who report high levels of stress.

Closer to home, a study conducted by Makrides found that for every dollar spent on a workplace wellness program, there was a return of $1.64.

Another project brought together organizations in Atlantic Canada to share their knowledge and experience about workplace wellness.

They discovered the key ingredients for successful initiatives include on-site programs, provision of incentives and recognition, and the need to build awareness, understanding and commitment among managers who can then create a supportive culture, which, in turn, supports employee health.

“We believe,” Leckie says, “that it makes us a better company.” IE