New health campaign aims to fight work-related stress

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) said while the full impact of the Covid-19 pandemic is yet to be fully understood, mental health issues are now the main reason given for sick days.

More than 17 million working days were lost last year as a result of stress, anxiety or depression, said the HSE, adding that its new campaign aims to help businesses recognise the signs of work-related stress.The HSE called for a “culture change” across Britain’s workplaces to ensure psychological risks are treated the same as physical ones.

Chief executive Sarah Albon said: “Work-related stress and poor mental health should be treated with the same significance as risks of poor physical health and injury.

“In terms of the affect it has on workers, significant and long-term stress can limit performance and impact personal lives.

“No worker should suffer in silence and if we don’t act now to improve workers’ mental health, this could evolve into a health and safety crisis.”

Jodie Hill, inset, managing director at Thrive Law in Leeds, who is calling for mental health risk assessments to be made mandatory in the workplace, said she has implemented a number of initiatives for her staff including paid wellbeing days and quarterly wellbeing risk assessments looking at physical health, nutrition, sleep, workloads and causes of stress.

Staff can also work flexibly. “We understand our team have other priorities that aren’t work related, and people work best at different times of the day,” she said. “If they have appointments, or childcare, or just need an extra hour in the morning to focus on their mental health before they start the day, we allow them to work around what they need to remain healthy and happy.”

Investment management firm Redmayne Bentley was recently highly commended for its approach to wellbeing in PIMFA’s Diversity & Inclusion Awards.

The Leeds-based firm was recognised for its &You wellbeing framework, which was created to offer support, advice and guidance, and provide access to mental health first-aiders.

Liz Dean, director of human resources, said: “Given the amount of time people spend at work, and the increase of hybrid working bringing home life and work life closer together, employers have a significant role to play in supporting their employees to manage their own mental wellbeing.”HSE's new campaign comes after the launch of the Workplace Sleep Ambassadors programme by The Sleep Charity to support UK businesses in tackling one of the leading causes of mental health issues in the workplace.

The training by the Doncaster-based charity includes a mixture of pre-recorded study and live sessions, and helps ambassadors develop their understanding of the causes of sleep issues, the facts surrounding a good night’s sleep and practical support strategies.

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