Work policies and mental health: social welfare integration As a tool to foster pathways to recovery

Work and mental health have always been in a complex and dynamic relationship. The working activity can act, depending on its characteristics, as a possible risk or protective factor against the onset of mental illness. At the same time, labour is used in mental health services as a rehabilitation tool, representing a real hallmark of recovery. Both aspects will be addressed in this paper. First, we will focus on the employment / unemployment status of patients affected by severe psychiatric disorders, and we will outline the relationship between suicide, unemployment, and social spending. Then, the legislative innovations (Regional Law 14/2015) introduced by the Emilia-Romagna Region will be illustrated. This law has redesigned the work integration programmes of “fragile and vulnerable” people, in order to reach a full integration of social and health interventions. The aim of this work is to raise awareness and promote a multidisciplinary dialogue between different agencies active in the field of public policies, work and mental health, to reconcile the intrinsic complexities of the relationship between work and mental health. To this end, some experiences of job placement will be described, based on a fruitful collaboration between different professionals (mental health professionals, social services and charities) and institutions in the Province of Modena.