Archive for category: Worker Wellness News

For many decades, organized labor has played a key role in establishing minimum safety standards in the US workplace. These efforts have mainly focused on the physical aspects of safety (i.e., falls, chemical exposure, noise reduction, etc.). More recently, public health professionals have identified that in order to better protect workers, the workforce eco-system must address the whole person. To this end, a major goal of establishing a WWP is to ensure that all workers have access to timely information regarding their mental aspects of safety on the job and in the community. In so doing, we will offer programming and advice on issues related to work-life balance, wellness, and well-being.

As the WWP develops, we will seek partnerships with local community agencies so that programming can be tailored to local needs. It is our intention to have a presence in towns across the state as a means to deliver training and/or perform research that informs our future activities for the benefit of all workers.

Wellness & Well-being Highlights

for the

Week of December 19, 2021

• Labor lesson from a previous pandemic
• Kellogg’s strike ends (1)
• Kellogg’s strike ends (2)
• Amazon & Labor (1)
• Amazon & Labor (2)
• Amazon & Labor (3)
• Amazon’s warehouse culture
• China’s forced labor
• 60k STL jobs not coming back soon
• Stress / Burnout / Resignations
• Proper PPE for Women
• MO teachers in distress
• Anxiety & Office delays
• Prison & Talent
• Amazon & Worker suicides
• College & Student suicides
• Judge overturns Sackler settlement
• Children’s MH & Pandemic
• Death & Distress in America
• COVID testing, etc.
• Mental Illness & COVID
• Non-COVID patients are struggling
• Proof of vax makes jobs easier
• The power of Fun & COVID
• Sober & Curious: Mindful drinking
• MH / Trauma / Invisible bruises
• Tips for restful sleep
• Info overload & Well-being
• Stopping negative self-talk
• Declutter your mind
• Holidays & Grief (1)
• Holidays & Grief (2)
• Lessons from grief
• Grief is love
• Student loan payment extension
• Are we cursing more?
• Non-pro athletes & CTE
• esports & Your kids
• Upcoming webinar: Chair yoga

NOTE: The links provided above are for informational purposes only. None of these serve as a substitute for medical advice one should obtain from his/her own primary care physician and/or mental health professional.

About our Worker Wellness Program (WWP):
For many decades, organized labor has played a key role in establishing minimum safety standards in the US workplace. These efforts have mainly focused on the physical aspects of safety (i.e., falls, chemical exposure, noise reduction, etc.). More recently, public health professionals have identified that in order to better protect workers, the workforce eco-system must address the whole person. To this end, a major goal of establishing a WWP is to ensure that all workers have access to timely information regarding their mental aspects of safety on the job and in the community. In so doing, we will offer programming and advice on issues related to work-life balance, wellness, and well-being.

As the WWP develops, we will seek partnerships with local community agencies so that programming can be tailored to local needs. It is our intention to have a presence in towns across the state as a means to deliver training and/or perform research that informs our future activities for the benefit of all workers.

Wellness & Well-being Highlights

for the

Week of December 5, 2021

• Starbucks union in Buffalo
• Kellogg & Striker replacements
• Wages / Low skilled workers / Amazon
• Worker shortages / Pay / Organizing
• Omicron & MH
• The next global pandemic: MH
• Reducing poverty & Improving MH
• US Surgeon General & Youth MH crisis
• Warning: Youth MH crisis
• Report: Youth MH crisis
• MH screening tool
• CO & MH investigation
• Impact of school lockdown drills
• When children’s brain develop too fast
• OD prevention
• Opioids story (1)
• Opioids story (2)
• STL & Fentanyl
• US Civil war & Opioids
• Sacklers update
• Cultivating resilience
• Being your own life coach
• Stretching / Energy / Mobility
• The toll of poor sleep
• More on grief
• Pain & Guilt
• EQ & BS
• Work-Life balance & Returning to the office
• Webinar:
• Herbal Teas

NOTE: The links provided above are for informational purposes only. None of these serve as a substitute for medical advice one should obtain from his/her own primary care physician and/or mental health professional.

Each week Dr. John Gaal provides us with a Workers’ Wellness Update. This update provides workers, community partners, and more with important articles that he has curated. Below are links to the articles. We hope you enjoy one, a couple, or all of the articles.

About our Worker Wellness Program (WWP):

For many decades, organized labor has played a key role in establishing minimum safety standards in the US workplace. These efforts have mainly focused on the physical aspects of safety (i.e., falls, chemical exposure, noise reduction, etc.). More recently, public health professionals have identified that in order to better protect workers, the workforce eco-system must address the whole person. To this end, a major goal of establishing a WWP is to ensure that all workers have access to timely information regarding their mental aspects of safety on the job and in the community. In so doing, we will offer programming and advice on issues related to work-life balance, wellness, and well-being.

As the WWP develops, we will seek partnerships with local community agencies so that programming can be tailored to local needs. It is our intention to have a presence in towns across the state as a means to deliver training and/or perform research that informs our future activities for the benefit of all workers.

Wellness & Well-being Highlights

for the

Week of November 21, 2021

How unions lift workers

Cannabis / Unions / MO

Minimum wage hike for federal contractors

Biden / Unions / Green energy

Grocery workers & Customer hostility

J Baker: A cultural icon from STL

Courage / Tennis / China

Debunking the Thanksgiving myth

Italy’s MH system: Taking a turn for the worse?

Dealing w/ pandemic burnout

A post-pandemic you?

Workers: The cost of being unvaxed?

Delay in office re-openings

Congress & NFL

Future of telehealth?

Gratitude & Happiness

Schools & MH days

Holidays & Social anxiety

Misunderstanding mindfulness

Mindfulness & Psychiatric patients

Responsibility / Freedom / MH

Grief after a suicide loss

Addressing grieving parents

Exercise & Appetite

The dark side of resilience

Giving better gifts

Opioids & Pharmacy chains (1)

Opioids & Pharmacy chains (2)

Protecting your brain & Concussion test

Athletes fearing CTE (1)

Athletes fearing CTE (2)

Opium business & Taliban

Plants & New medicines

NOTE: The links provided above are for informational purposes only. None of these serve as a substitute for medical advice one should obtain from his/her own primary care physician and/or mental health professional.

About our Worker Wellness Program (WWP):

For many decades, organized labor has played a key role in establishing minimum safety standards in the US workplace. These efforts have mainly focused on the physical aspects of safety (i.e., falls, chemical exposure, noise reduction, etc.). More recently, public health professionals have identified that in order to better protect workers, the workforce eco-system must address the whole person. To this end, a major goal of establishing a WWP is to ensure that all workers have access to timely information regarding their mental aspects of safety on the job and in the community. In so doing, we will offer programming and advice on issues related to work-life balance, wellness, and well-being.

As the WWP develops, we will seek partnerships with local community agencies so that programming can be tailored to local needs. It is our intention to have a presence in towns across the state as a means to deliver training and/or perform research that informs our future activities for the benefit of all workers.

Wellness & Well-being Highlights

for the

Week of November 7, 2021

STL HC workers strike

STL HC workers/unions/vax

More high-paying jobs requiring COVID vax

Challenges facing School Nurses

Nurses & gratitude

Teachers/MH/fighting burnout

Robots & labor shortage

Boston Unions & DEI

Fathers & paid leave

MO law-makers & MH

Fresh approach to fighting opioids crisis

Rise of synthetic opioids

Opioids in Court (1)

Opioids in Court (2)

Dopesick & Sacklers

DEA & opioids recovery

Opioids & access to recovery

A judge on MH

NFL’s AJ Brown on MH

LA study: Students’ MH

Signs of suicide: Children

Hope Squad: Preventing suicide

Youth/discrimination/MH

OCD or not?

Treating chronic pain

Helping back pain patients

The power of Human Touch

3 mantras to help brighten your workday

Depression & exercise

Coping with S.A.D.

Discomfort & grief

Types of meditation

—Webinars—

Recorded: Live your life well!

Upcoming: Mindfulness

NOTE: The links provided above are for informational purposes only. None of these serve as a substitute for medical advice one should obtain from his/her own primary care physician and/or mental health professional.

Each week Dr. John Gaal provides us with a Workers’ Wellness Update. This update provides workers, community partners, and more with important articles that he has curated. Below are links to the articles. We hope you enjoy one, a couple, or all of the articles.

About our Worker Wellness Program (WWP):

For many decades, organized labor has played a key role in establishing minimum safety standards in the US workplace. These efforts have mainly focused on the physical aspects of safety (i.e., falls, chemical exposure, noise reduction, etc.). More recently, public health professionals have identified that in order to better protect workers, the workforce eco-system must address the whole person. To this end, a major goal of establishing a WWP is to ensure that all workers have access to timely information regarding their mental aspects of safety on the job and in the community. In so doing, we will offer programming and advice on issues related to work-life balance, wellness, and well-being.

As the WWP develops, we will seek partnerships with local community agencies so that programming can be tailored to local needs. It is our intention to have a presence in towns across the state as a means to deliver training and/or perform research that informs our future activities for the benefit of all workers.

Wellness & Well-being Highlights

for the

Week of October 24, 2021

Speaking with your kids

Teens, gender, and social media

Getting help for teens

Why employees don’t use EAPs for MH

Crisis in construction

Focus on MH in construction

MH crisis: A Deep Dive

Waiting on a therapist?

Leaving MH patients in limbo

MH days and the great resignation

The need for MH support in the workplace

Complicated grief

Living with suicidal thoughts

PTSD’s long reach

Addressing anxiety

Sleep & aging

Self-care habits

Does marijuana help with anxiety & depression?

Opioid epidemic

Tackling OD deaths

Dangers of fentanyl

Pilot: Safe injection sites

The Safe Supply Movement

Dopesick: Follow-up

Knowing the signs of opioid addiction

Pain: CBT vs Opioids?

MH for college admin

Transforming MH therapy

Yoga for beginners

Upcoming webinar: Live your life well

Prison’s impact on families

NFL & safer helmet designs

NHL & sexual abuse

Need for more nurses

The 4-day workweek?

NOTE: The links provided above are for informational purposes only. None of these serve as a substitute for medical advice one should obtain from his/her own primary care physician and/or mental health professional.