individuals with mental health problems. As pointed out, employee mental health problems and their impact on an enterprise's productivity and disability costs are a critical human resource issue. Increasingly, employers, employers' organisations and international organisational bodies are recognising that the economic and social costs of mental health problems in the workplace cannot be ignored.
The purpose of the research
With a grant from the Eli Lilly and Company Foundation, the ILO conducted in-depth situation analyses in five countries. The five countries selected were Finland, Germany, Poland, UK, and USA. The primary purpose of these situation analyses was to conduct an in-depth assessment of the impact of mental health problems in the workplace in order to determine the scope of the problem in competitive employment. Related to this purpose was also the assessment of the specific ramifications of the impact of mental health problem for employees and enterprises such as workplace productivity, loss of income, health-care and social security costs, access to mental health services and good practices by employers.
An essential objective of these situation analyses is that the information collected and assessed may be used to create further educational materials and assist in designing programmes which can be used by governmental agencies, unions, and employers' organisations for mental health promotion, prevention, and rehabilitation.
The situation analyses were based primarily on a thorough literature review, including documents from government agencies, NGOs, employer and employee organisations, as well as interviews with key informants.
The case of Finland
The occurrence of diagnosed mental disorders, and of depression in particular, has risen markedly in Finland during the past decades. Currently, mental disorders are the most frequent group of diseases causing disability. The prevalence of burnout and stress is alarmingly high in the Finnish labour force. There are many reasons for the increase in the incidence of mental disorders. These include the economic recession of the early 1990s, high unemployment, improved recognition, and changes in the diagnostic system. Awareness of the scope of the problems and their consequences for productivity has also risen, and the occupational health care providers and employers are demonstrating their willingness to address the issue in the workplace. Mental health is included in the concept of work ability that has been of interest to governments, employees, and employers during the past decade in particular.
This situation analysis provides an overview of the current state of mental health issues with respect to the world of work in Finland. The following three areas are examined in depth: Mental health at the national level, The role of government and the social partners, and Managing mental health in the workplace.
MENTAL HEALTH AT NATIONAL LEVEL looks at the occurrence of mental disorders, burnout, and stress with an emphasis on work context; examines the economic burden of mental disorders to society and employers; and describes the health care and rehabilitation systems and legislative framework in Finland.
THE ROLE OF GOVERNMENT AND THE SOCIAL PARTNERS introduces the roles of Ministries of Labour, Health and Social Affairs, employees' and employers' organisations, and non-governmental organisations. It also introduces a number of research institutes active in the field.
MANAGING MENTAL HEALTH IN THE WORKPLACE explains the work ability maintenance activities in Finland and gives some concrete examples of what Finnish employers have done to promote mental health in the workplace.
