Meaningful work is fundamental to the wellbeing of many Tasmanians with a mental illness. The incoming Tasmanian Government needs to invest in initiatives to support Tasmanians with a mental illness to access and maintain employment.
Getting more Tasmanians living with a mental illness into employment makes social and economic sense.
Employment is a fundamental component of a meaningful, productive life, providing a sense of purpose and a role in the community. It also helps financially and increases access to positive influences and opportunities.
For people living with a mental illness, employment can often be the single most effective way to improve their overall health and wellbeing. Unemployment however can often be a trigger for instances of low self-esteem, depression and other episodic conditions.
Tasmania’s future economic prosperity depends on the productivity of our workforce and increasing the number of Tasmanians participating in employment, education or training. Tasmania’s workforce participation rate is today 10% lower then the national average. With more than half of working-age Tasmanians living with a severe mental illness without work, removing barriers for this population group into employment or training is a practical way of addressing Tasmania’s poor workforce participation rate.
A plan for action:
To increase opportunities for Tasmanians living with a severe mental illness to find and maintain employment, all Tasmanian political parties must commit to the following four strategies:
Fund a social marketing strategy to address stigma and discrimination associated with mental illness in the Tasmanian community.
Support a pilot program in the community sector to establish partnerships with Tasmanian employers and industry groups to encourage, train and support employers to employ Tasmanians with a severe mental illness.
Develop specialist programs to support mental health consumers in supported accommodation, recovery and rehabilitation programs in accessing mainstream education and training opportunities including the Tasmanian Polytechnic.
Commit to increase core funding to both government and non-government mental health services for the employment of additional support workers and specialist services, including recovery and rehabilitation interventions.
To download a printer-friendly copy of this statement click here.
To view the accompanying media release click here.
UPDATE - TASMANIAN GREENS BACK OUR ISLAND OUR VOICES MENTAL HEALTH RECOMMENDATION (FRIDAY, 9 SEPT 2009)
The Tasmanian Greens have backed the Our Island Our Voices campiagn's call for further support for Tasmanians living with a mental illness to access and maintain employment. Greens Spokesperson for Mental Health, Cassy O'Connor statement can be viewed here.
One in five Australians, or as many as 100,000 Tasmanians, will experience some form of mental illness during their lifetime. Mental illness can affect anyone at any stage of life.
Research indicates that people living with a mental illness are far less likely to be employed and have considerably less secure employment than people without a mental illness. People living with a severe mental illness generally have lower educational attainment and skills than the broader community and are usually in lower paid employment.
Some of the reasons why people who live with a mental illness struggle to maintain employment include negative employer and community attitudes, employer flexibility, the episodic nature of mental illness and a lack of suitable jobs. These barriers often can feel insurmountable for someone looking for work, particularly during the recovery and rehabilitation process.