Response to NY Times Article: "Deaths Draw Attention to Wall Street’s Grueling Pace"

Inappropriately long hours at work are cause for concern. Long hours are not only unhealthy for the body, but they are extremely damaging to the mind—especially if workers feel like they need to spend long hours at work to gain approval from their employers. Workers should be measured more on impact, results and how results are achieved, rather than on hours spent. This is a tragic epidemic. This sort of pressure in the workplace is detrimental. I applaud Goldman’s policies, but I wonder, are they enough? 

Read the NY Times Article I am responding to here.

Response to CAMH Survey: "Over half of workers with depression do not recognize need for treatment"

According to a Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) survey, more than 50 percent of workers with depression do not realize that they need treatment. There are a variety of reasons why they don’t recognize their need for help. But, some causes for this denial include the stigma, embarrassment, and fear of disclosure associated with depression and other mental illnesses. Workplaces should support people with mental illness rather than looking down on them. If the workplace fostered acceptance and empathy, employees suffering from depression would be more likely to seek help.

Read about the study that I am responding to here.

Response to "To Get More Out of Workers, Invest More in Them"

My research shows that the biggest cause of unnecessary stress, and therefore disengagement in the workplace, is a fear of losing a job due to arbitrary or subjectivity and unfairness in performance or determination in terminations. This is a great example of how an organization can minimize the negative impact of downturns. This article reminded me of the 2014 Gallup Survey, which indicated that more than 70 percent of American workers are not engaged. My bet is that, at Barry-Wehmiller companies, more than 70 percent ARE engaged. They don’t pay above average wages or provide profit sharing…but they do provide security.

Click here to read the NY Times article I am responding to.

Featured in Advantage Magazine

Recently I was featured in Advantage magazine. I discussed overcoming leukemia and how that shaped my focus on supporting medical research and creating psychologically safe workplaces.

You can read the story here - Turning Over a New Life