Offering help to distressed and potentially suicidal employees during pandemic

We are living in trying times. We and the people we work with have had to deal with numerous hardships, which will continue indefinitely. Some have lost, or at least been separated from, family and friends. Some are suffering from lack of contact because of social distancing, quarantines, and isolation orders. Some have sustained a loss of income or employment-related changes. All of us (some more acutely than others) face the fear of contracting COVID-19 through contact with others at work or elsewhere. All of us have undergone the shock of living a life that is not the normal we have become used to. And all of us are probably wondering what the future holds and whether the old “normal” will ever return.

Such lifestyle changes and hardships take a toll on our psychological well-being. This leads me to revisit a topic I wrote about years ago—what to do when an employee seems to be suicidal, depressed, or otherwise in need of help with their mental health.

Mental disabilities and the ADA

If an employee says or does something indicating she may be suicidal or is struggling with her mental health, be aware she may have a condition covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The ADA protects employees with both physical and mental disabilities from discrimination in employment.