Depression In The Workplace Essay

1394 Words6 Pages

“The worse thing about Depression is people who don’t have it, just don’t get it”. Unknown

Workplace depression is a major issue which spans across all cultures and economies with serious implications to both the employee and employer alike. The Impact of Depression at Work Audit (IDeA) evaluates the societal and economic burden of depression in the workplace across various geographic regions. The latest report from a study carried out in South Africa creates interesting, but potentially troubling reading for employers. The South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG) conducted this research to better understand how South African employees experience Depression at work, how much awareness exists in the workplace environment about …show more content…

It is estimated that 20% of the population may suffer from major depression during the course of their life, with it being more prevalent in women. Just as Depression takes many different forms, it has many possible causes. Depression is often caused by a combination of external factors, such as financial worries, legal problems, divorce or the death of a loved one as well as genetics make-up and physiological or biochemical factors. For each individual, there is a particular complex pattern based on these factors which when combined either causes or prevents Depression at any given time. For some, it is possible to directly pin-point a specific event which triggers Depression, yet for others, there are no apparent reasons as on the face of it their lives are going …show more content…

The person is able to perform the inherent requirements of a particular job with or without reasonable accommodation measures being put in place, as applicable. An issue which is being increasingly raised is that Depression in its different forms may well fall within the definition of disabilities as identified in the EEA. It, therefore, has the potential to afford an employee substantial protection and designated status. Therefore, individuals that disclose their status can be classified then subsequently have their status reflect as part of the workplace diversity statistics. However, this being the case an employee must benefit from reasonable accommodation measures being put in