Source: OHS Alert (Subscription service) - 05.09.2025
Ahead of national R U OK? Day, a safety culture specialist has warned of the health, safety and productivity risks associated with the still-common "hard-nosed" approach to people management, and highlighted a "mismatch" in the beliefs around the appropriateness of checking in on a colleague's wellbeing.
Aframes Safety CEO Alistair Schuback told OHS Alert that many workplace managers feel that if they "put more pressure" on their teams, and drive home the consequences of mistakes or misconduct, then their people are "going to rise".
This approach often involves placing excessive pressure on workers, emotionally manipulating and belittling them, and making them "look silly" in front others, taking away their dignity, he said.
It might seem like a management style from a bygone era, but Schuback sees it "all the time".
He said it is both ineffective and hazardous to the psychological health of workers.
Schuback recently attended a muster meeting at a workplace, where a manager was outlining what workers were not permitted to do and threatening them with formal written warnings, clearly directing his comments towards a recently employed truck driver.
Schuback said he could see the truck driver was "right on the edge of what they could handle".
If a worker's "plate is already overflowing, they're not going to be able to function" under increased pressure, he said.
"Putting more water down a pipe that's already backing up is only going to cause it to back up more."
Schuback is an R U OK? community ambassador.
On R U OK? Day, on 11 September, Australians are urged to reach out to their workmates and others and ask them if they are okay, creating a sense of belonging and connection, and potentially changing lives.
R U OK? board member Annie Fardell Hartley – a psychologist and suicidologist – recently revealed that R U OK? research showed that one in three people are reluctant to ask others if they're okay – even if they sense they're struggling – for reasons including concerns around saying the wrong thing, invading privacy or not knowing how to help.
However, the overwhelming majority of people surveyed for the study said they felt grateful and supported when someone asked them if they were okay, she said.
"These conversations matter and they're often more welcome than we think," Fardell Hartley said.
"People don't expect you to have all the answers or the perfect words. They value trust, genuine care, and someone who really listens," she said.
According to Schuback, the "mismatch" in the statistics can be explained by an Australian culture where people view the struggles of others as private, but the individuals who are struggling want others to reach out to them.
People need to remember that the are-you-okay question does not involve solving problems, but listening, being a "catalyst" for conversation, and being a "linker", where needed, Schuback said.
In a workplace setting, people can encourage a colleague to consult the employee assistance program or their GP, he said, adding that those who attend a doctor for mental health reasons are entitled to a high number of subsidised visits.
Getting help is "a lot cheaper than you think".
On his consultancy work, Schuback said he reminds client companies and their workers that one of their main work-related goals is to make money or earn wages, and poor psychological health is the surest way to undermine that objective.
Many companies are more worried about what they're achieving than how they're achieving it, but if they switch their focus and look after their people, they "get more done", he said.
Schuback noted he previously worked as maintenance engineer across a number of heavy industries, and he views safety as "preventive maintenance".
"If you look after your people, you preventively maintain [your workforce]... it's going to be an asset that gives you more longevity, more productivity and causes you less dramas," he said.
Managers need to work out how to "enable [workers] for success".
Instead of "utilising the asset unsustainably", managers must help workers "manage their loads so that they are functional, productive and happy workers that look after themselves".
"A good coach is usually trying to help the team play as opposed to just judge the team into performance," Schuback said.