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Working against the backdrop of extreme marginalisation: stigma and the social relational model for the setting of mental health conditions

Hadar Elraz Orcid Logo, Jen Remnant

The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Pages: 1 - 28

Swansea University Author: Hadar Elraz Orcid Logo

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DOI (Published version): 10.1080/09585192.2025.2608825

Abstract

This paper investigates how employees with mental health conditions (MHCs) experience and respond to working in the contemporary UK workplace. Employing the Social Relational Model (SRM) of disability, the paper positions stigma as an organising structural force that actively produces Social and Rel...

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Published in: The International Journal of Human Resource Management
ISSN: 0958-5192 1466-4399
Published: Informa UK Limited 2026
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URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa71193
first_indexed 2026-01-05T12:40:53Z
last_indexed 2026-01-30T04:30:46Z
id cronfa71193
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spelling 2026-01-28T16:07:34.7645535 v2 71193 2026-01-05 Working against the backdrop of extreme marginalisation: stigma and the social relational model for the setting of mental health conditions ff183e6b1d84cf2a26f40dd64de00419 0000-0003-0799-4629 Hadar Elraz Hadar Elraz true false 2026-01-05 CBAE This paper investigates how employees with mental health conditions (MHCs) experience and respond to working in the contemporary UK workplace. Employing the Social Relational Model (SRM) of disability, the paper positions stigma as an organising structural force that actively produces Social and Relational disabling barriers – impairment effects, barriers to doing, and barriers to being – that shape the working lives of employees with MHCs. Qualitative data from 42 interviewees working for varied employers – including small, medium and large enterprises, public and private sector – reveals how workplace processes and practices assume norms of the ‘ideal worker’, a worker characterised by uninterrupted productivity and emotional stability. We explore how these norms contribute to the stigmatisation of workers managing MHCs and how consequently these workers avoid workplace stigmatisation. By explicitly linking understandings of structural stigma to the SRM, we advance understanding of how stigma operates in often indirect and subtle ways to disable employees with MHCs. Conclusions with implications for HRM include the need to confront normative ideals and institutional practices that sustain stigma by advocating for practices that dismantle stigma, challenge ableist constructs, support diverse mental health experiences and, focus on creating ideal workplaces, rather than continuing to valorise the ideal worker. Journal Article The International Journal of Human Resource Management 0 1 28 Informa UK Limited 0958-5192 1466-4399 Disabilities, mental health conditions, stigma, inclusion, ableism, HRM practices 7 1 2026 2026-01-07 10.1080/09585192.2025.2608825 COLLEGE NANME Management School COLLEGE CODE CBAE Swansea University SU Library paid the OA fee (TA Institutional Deal) This study was supported by the UK Economic and Social Research Council [under grant number I902023]. 2026-01-28T16:07:34.7645535 2026-01-05T12:39:26.3286182 Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences School of Management - Business Management Hadar Elraz 0000-0003-0799-4629 1 Jen Remnant 2 71193__36131__dddb4f38e9554c909d5052220e136a33.pdf 71193.VOR.pdf 2026-01-28T16:03:43.1545006 Output 2164814 application/pdf Version of Record true © 2026 The Author(s). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. true eng http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
title Working against the backdrop of extreme marginalisation: stigma and the social relational model for the setting of mental health conditions
spellingShingle Working against the backdrop of extreme marginalisation: stigma and the social relational model for the setting of mental health conditions
Hadar Elraz
title_short Working against the backdrop of extreme marginalisation: stigma and the social relational model for the setting of mental health conditions
title_full Working against the backdrop of extreme marginalisation: stigma and the social relational model for the setting of mental health conditions
title_fullStr Working against the backdrop of extreme marginalisation: stigma and the social relational model for the setting of mental health conditions
title_full_unstemmed Working against the backdrop of extreme marginalisation: stigma and the social relational model for the setting of mental health conditions
title_sort Working against the backdrop of extreme marginalisation: stigma and the social relational model for the setting of mental health conditions
author_id_str_mv ff183e6b1d84cf2a26f40dd64de00419
author_id_fullname_str_mv ff183e6b1d84cf2a26f40dd64de00419_***_Hadar Elraz
author Hadar Elraz
author2 Hadar Elraz
Jen Remnant
format Journal article
container_title The International Journal of Human Resource Management
container_volume 0
container_start_page 1
publishDate 2026
institution Swansea University
issn 0958-5192
1466-4399
doi_str_mv 10.1080/09585192.2025.2608825
publisher Informa UK Limited
college_str Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
hierarchytype
hierarchy_top_id facultyofhumanitiesandsocialsciences
hierarchy_top_title Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
hierarchy_parent_id facultyofhumanitiesandsocialsciences
hierarchy_parent_title Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
department_str School of Management - Business Management{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences{{{_:::_}}}School of Management - Business Management
document_store_str 1
active_str 0
description This paper investigates how employees with mental health conditions (MHCs) experience and respond to working in the contemporary UK workplace. Employing the Social Relational Model (SRM) of disability, the paper positions stigma as an organising structural force that actively produces Social and Relational disabling barriers – impairment effects, barriers to doing, and barriers to being – that shape the working lives of employees with MHCs. Qualitative data from 42 interviewees working for varied employers – including small, medium and large enterprises, public and private sector – reveals how workplace processes and practices assume norms of the ‘ideal worker’, a worker characterised by uninterrupted productivity and emotional stability. We explore how these norms contribute to the stigmatisation of workers managing MHCs and how consequently these workers avoid workplace stigmatisation. By explicitly linking understandings of structural stigma to the SRM, we advance understanding of how stigma operates in often indirect and subtle ways to disable employees with MHCs. Conclusions with implications for HRM include the need to confront normative ideals and institutional practices that sustain stigma by advocating for practices that dismantle stigma, challenge ableist constructs, support diverse mental health experiences and, focus on creating ideal workplaces, rather than continuing to valorise the ideal worker.
published_date 2026-01-07T05:33:28Z
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score 11.09611

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