Work and the workplace play a significant role in an employee’s sense of self and mental health. Participation in the workplace can enhance or undermine a person’s mental health regardless of whether someone has a preexisting mental health condition or not.
Decent work has its pros and cons, it provides financial stability and a sense of purpose. On the other hand, the demands and stressors that may arise in the workplace can contribute to work-related distress and severe mental health outcomes, including suicide. Collier emphasises that any fatality that happens in the workplace must be investigated including identifying the causes of the incident, unsafe conditions, or actions that may have contributed to the incident.
“These legal obligations ensure that employees have the right to a safe work environment, while also protecting employers who have fulfilled their duties from being held liable for tragic events such as suicide. She says this case highlights how an employer can be held liable for the actions of its employees when there is a clear connection between those actions and the work environment.Ramjettan adds the general principle that an employer is vicariously liable for a wrong committed by an employee during the course or scope of his or her employment is a long-standing principle in our law.