INTHEBLACK December 2021 - Magazine - Page 65
MANAGE MENTAL
HEALTH TO AVOID
PROFESSIONAL
INDEMNITY CLAIMS
THE COVID-19 PRESSURE COOKER HAS
AMPLIFIED THE NEED FOR PRACTICES TO
SAFEGUARD THEIR TEAM’S WELLBEING –
NOT ONLY FROM A COMPLIANCE AND MORAL
PERSPECTIVE, BUT ALSO TO MITIGATE THE
RISK OF PROFESSIONAL INDEMNITY CLAIMS.
T
he pandemic has placed significant
and sustained pressure on public
practitioners.
Staff are stretched to capacity supporting
hard-hit clients and navigating new
legislation – often, for those in lockdown
situations, while remote-schooling children
from a makeshift office.
Unsurprisingly, an Accounting Web survey
has found more than 93 per cent of
accountants and bookkeepers’ stress levels
were higher than normal last year, with
53 per cent revealing it caused them
serious concern.
Many practitioners and their staff have
not had a holiday, or even taken time off,
for more than 18 months, increasing their
susceptibility to fatigue and burnout.
Inevitably, overtaxed workers make mistakes,
which leaves practices vulnerable to
professional indemnity claims, warns Drew
Fenton CPA, director at Fenton Green & Co.
“Most accountants have more work than
they can deal with, and their clients are
under severe stress,” he says.
“Financial difficulty is the number one
determinant in relation to having a claim, and
claims, in turn, may have a negative effect on
mental health and lead to further
challenges.”
Managing employee wellbeing
To ensure staff can operate productively in the
current climate, Fenton suggests employers
offer wellness days – not necessarily as part of
annual leave entitlements, but as an extra
allowance that employees can use as needed,
or on a regular basis during lockdown periods.
Mental health, or “doona days”, should be
normalised as part of the company culture,
starting from the top down, with Fenton
explaining it is no longer acceptable to expect
staff to “push through”.
“Certainly encourage or even mandate that
they have some holidays, even if they’ve got
nowhere to go,” he adds.
Emboldening staff to set boundaries around
regular office hours is also important.
Fenton says emails sent late at night are a
clear warning sign that employees are burning
the candle at both ends, with recent reports
exposing a spike in unpaid overtime among
remote workers.
Yet with a study from Stanford University
showing productivity per hour declines
sharply when a person works more than
50 hours a week – so much so that any
more than 55 hours is pointless – rolemodelling a regimented routine with plenty
of breaks is essential, both from an output
and risk management perspective.
Steering the ship
Employers have a duty of care under Work
Health and Safety legislation to make sure
remote staff have a safe working environment.
Aside from minimising physical risks,
they should undertake regular welfare
checks, offer flexible hours where possible,
and provide information about support
services, as well as a point of contact
for employees to discuss any concerns.
Fenton also believes it is worthwhile to
review employee files – “having someone
peer review them, and even perhaps ring a
few clients to find out how the employee is
going, whether everything is alright and on
track”, he says.
In order to keep team members abreast of
new legislation and government initiatives,
Fenton recommends reaching out to
colleagues and industry peers, whether by
tuning into webinars and podcasts, or by
joining relevant social media groups to ask
questions and share information.
This is particularly beneficial for small
practices, as it facilitates connections – a
critical part of mental wellbeing. “They’ve got
to talk to people and share their issues with
others,” he says. “If you think you’ve got a
problem, there are a hundred others out
there who’ve got exactly the same one.”
Click here to find out more about professional indemnity insurance for CPA Australia members
intheblack.com December 2021 65