A Manager's Response to Workplace Suicide

There are more than 41,000 suicide deaths per year in the U.S; the majority occur among people of working age. This number alone can dramatically affect the workplace. Add to this number that there are about six people affected, many being coworkers, for every suicide death, and the potential impact to the workplace quickly becomes evident. Even workplaces with the most comprehensive suicide prevention policies and programs are not immune from a suicide that occurs at work or off-site. Because of the high likelihood that at some point a workplace will experience an employee suicide (or a suicide by a client, vendor or employee family member), it is critical that managers know how to respond and facilitate appropriate "postvention" services designed to help employees and the organization recover and return to normal. Postvention services include psychological first aid, crisis intervention and other support services that managers can facilitate for employees following a workplace suicide or suicide attempt. In 2013, the Workplace Postvention Task Force of the American Association of Suicidology and the Workplace Task Force of the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention, in partnership with the Carson J Spencer Foundation and Crisis Care Network, wrote, "A Manager’s Guide to Suicide in the Workplace: 10 Action Steps for Dealing with the Aftermath of a Suicide." The guide has been evaluated by managers in diverse work organizations, including by leaders in human resources, management, safety, occupational health and wellness and employee assistance programs. The overwhelming feedback about the guide was that it is useful; workplace leaders who reviewed the guide but have not yet experienced a workplace suicide plan to keep the guide as a resource. As the title of the guide implies, it provides managers with 10 specific actions they can take following a workplace suicide. The actions are divided into phases to help the manager work through the acute phase, recovery phase and reconstructing phase. Additional useful tools for managers include how to draft notification memos and prepare external announcements to disseminate to the broader workplace and the media. Some of the most useful tools in the guide include checklists for how to implement each action, descriptions of how to identify roles for managers during the response, instructions for following crisis decision-making flowcharts and templates for drafting crisis communication messages. The overwhelming majority of users said they would recommend this resource to other managers. This blog is designed to encourage you to look at the guide and consider using it as a resource, should the need arise in your workplace. We also welcome your feedback on suggestions to make the guide more useful to all workplace leaders. Feedback can be sent to the senior program director at the Carson J Spencer Foundation, jess@carsonjspencer.org. With so many working-aged adults dying by suicide each year, managers need to be prepared to deal with such a crisis. This guide provides concrete steps managers can follow after a suicide to psychologically support their workforce and provide leadership to the work organization as they work to return quickly to normal operations.