Attorney Deragon's Article on Mental Health Issues in the Workplace Featured in NH Bar News

Beth Deragon’s article, Mental Health Issues in the Workplace – Ending the Stigma and Creating Strategies, was featured in the New Hampshire Bar News, Employment Law Edition, on April 17, 2019.As Attorney Deragon explains in the article, mental health issues have received an increasing amount of public attention over the last few years. One in five adults experience diagnosed or undiagnosed mental illnesses at some point in their life and nearly one in 25 (nearly 10 million) adults are living with a serious mental illness. However, not all employees are comfortable coming forward to their employers.“Employers can safely assume that their workforce includes individuals who have diagnosed and undiagnosed mental health impairments. This panopoly of scenarios presents challenges to employers, employees and health care providers,” Deragon explains. Fortunately, employees are protected under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The act protects individuals who have a mental impairment that substantially limits one or more majority life activity and is made on an individualized basis.Attorneys must realize that mental health impairments are currently present and will continue to be present in the workplace and in their clients’ workplaces. “The greater degree to which employers de-stigmatize mental health disorders, the more comfortable employees might be in coming forward.” The increase in public attention and conversation is wonderful, but it is imperative that employers are prepared for the conversation and that they are acting in compliance with the ADA.Read the full article here. Deragon is Of Counsel at Pastori | Krans whose practice focuses on advising businesses in a wide variety of employment law matters including: hiring, disciplining and terminating employees: training supervisors and employees; internal investigations; employee handbooks and policies; wage and hour compliances; and employment contracts. She also represents businesses in employment litigation, appearing before NH Commission for Human Rights, NH Department of Labor, NH Employment Security, and NH State and Federal Courts.Deragon can be reached at (603) 369-4206 or bderagon@pastorikrans.com.