Recovery Ready Workplaces Nebraska — employer resource guide

The Nebraska Panhandle Worksite Wellness Council needed a resource that could walk an average employer through a genuinely complex topic: how to support employees living with substance use disorder (SUD) or mental health issues, without stigma, without legal exposure, and in a way that actually worked.

The booklet is 29 pages and covers a lot of ground — workplace impact statistics, ADA/FMLA/MHPAEA compliance, a step-by-step Recovery-Readiness framework, sample policies, guidance on fighting stigma and using person-first language, Employee Assistance Programs, and a local resource directory. The design challenge was making that content feel accessible rather than overwhelming.

The visual system uses a bright green and purple palette anchored by a "Made in Nebraska" stamp mark and a recurring grass/meadow illustration motif — regional, warm, and intentionally non-clinical. Strong photography of real people (not stock-photo gloss) runs throughout. Data is pulled into yellow callout blocks. The step-by-step Recovery-Readiness framework is rendered as a flowchart — one of the more complex layout challenges in the piece, requiring hierarchy to do a lot of work across five sequential steps.

The booklet was developed by employers in recovery themselves, which shaped the content. That context informed the design direction: this is a peer-built resource, and it should feel like it.