Mental Health Awareness: It's Time To Take Action

Mental Health Awareness cannot be understated. Arguably it’s only in the last decade that employers have really been directing focus towards the mental health of their employees but there’s still so much more than needs to be achieved across the board.

In a report undertaken by LawCare in 2021, the results of their survey shared with the legal profession as to mental health challenges was published and the results were illuminating as to the severity of well-being and mental health.

The report found that 69% of the respondents had suffered from mental health challenges including burn-out and bullying.

This is not a surprising outcome by any measure - law firms and lawyers, especially those based in the City, are burdened with the reality of long-hours (sometimes requiring an overnight stay in the office), unmissable deadlines, persistent billing targets and a negligible margin for error.

All of these factors contribute to increase in mental ill-health within the legal profession.

How are firms reacting?

Firms are encouraged to take the mental wellbeing of their staff seriously and put measures in place to reduce burn-out, harassment and bullying.

In reality however, firms are not reducing the pressure asserted to fee-earners which has caused the mental health wellbeing of lawyers to be at an all time low.

With training contracts in high demand and in short supply, firms have adopted a ‘survival of the fittest’ approach which merely adds to the pressure of budding and seasoned lawyers alike.

Is it time to take control?

In light of this, it’s time that lawyers take a step back and evaluate their own prioritisation of personal mental wellbeing.

In recent years a high-profile city partner died after suffering an acute mental health crisis due to impossibly long hours.

This is a price that no lawyer should have to pay for their profession and it certainly should never have been expected.

Lawyers who feel that their mental health is on a decline should act quickly and evaluate their situation. Perhaps the solution is to walk-away and find pastures new.

There are some firms who place considerable thought and measures on ensuring that the mental wellbeing of staff ranks highly, but finding them can be tricky and time consuming, especially for an over-worked lawyer of support staff.

At Salt Mountain, we focus not only on finding firms outstanding candidates, but also on pairing fantastic candidates with perfect positions, which match their search criteria.

Speak to us now about mental health - our team have all practices as lawyers so we understand your positions better than most and when you’re ready, we’ll help you find a place that gets your mental wellbeing back on track.

https://www.saltmountainrecruit.com