New “Time to Connect” webinar series: let’s make workplace mental health a priority

Mar 23, 2021

As part of the Healthy Minds at Work campaign, the MGEU is introducing a new webinar series for MGEU members interested in the connection between our mental health and our work.

“Right now, we’re all hearing an awful lot about how important it is to pay attention to our mental health,” said MGEU President Michelle Gawronsky. “But well before the pandemic hit, our members were talking about taking workplace mental health as seriously as we take traditional physical health and safety issues.”

On Tuesday, March 30 at 7:00 pm, the webinar series kicks off with A Roadmap for Change with Blaine Duncan, MGEU’s Safety and Health Specialist, who will be talking about the campaign and the role union members can play in making mental health a priority in our workplaces.

“We spend most of our waking hours at work,” Duncan points out, “and our employers actually have a responsibility to create work environments that support and promote good mental health. In this introductory webinar, I’ll be taking members through some of the tools available, including the National Standard for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace, to begin working with their employers right now.”

The webinar is just one of a number of initiatives currently underway through MGEU’s Healthy Minds at Work campaign.

“Along with talking to our employers about the importance of our mental health on the job, we also have to start talking more with each other,” Duncan said. “Many of us fear being labeled or judged if we admit to mental health challenges and that needs to change.”

That’s why on the first Wednesday of every month – including this April 7! -- members are being asked to Wear Red to stop the stigma.

“Red is the MGEU colour, it’s loud and proud, and after just a few Wear Red Wednesdays, we’re finding it’s really sparking conversations in our Locals,” Gawronsky said. “I think the focus of our first webinar says it well – we are finally on the road towards the kind of workplaces that actively promote good mental health.”