Workplace Mental Health

The HSE recommends for every 50 employees, we should have at least 1 qualified first aider. We have stringent rules around protecting our staff’s physical health, but what about their mental health?

• 1 in 6.8 people in the UK experience workplace mental health problems*

• More than 1 in 5 people (21%) admitted to calling in sick because of workplace stress

• 14% of people resigned due to workplace stress with a further 42% of people considering resigning for the same reasons

• 30% of staff disagreed with the statement ‘I would feel able to talk openly with my line manager if I was feeling stressed’ **

Mental health is worth the investment

The statistics above speak volumes about the state of the UK’s working population and their poor mental health. As a business owner, you want to take care of your employees but also need to justify any costs associated. What is the bottom line when it comes to mental health? According to Sainsbury’s Centre for Mental Health, UK businesses spend:

• £8.4 billion a year in sickness absence. The average employee takes 7 days off sick each year of which 40% are for mental health problems. This adds up to 70 million lost working days a year, including 1 in 7 directly caused by a person’s work or working conditions
  

• £15.1 billion a year in reduced productivity at work. ‘Presenteeism’ accounts for 1.5x as much working time lost as absenteeism and costs more to employers because it is more common among higher-paid staff
  

• £2.4 billion a year in replacing staff who leave their jobs because of mental ill health +
  

Are other businesses investing in mental health?

Companies that employ millennials are the first to join the mental health movement because this generation’s workplace standards and expectations are typically higher. Where the corporate giants lead, the rest of us will follow and small businesses that often have a closer working relationship with employees are quickly following suit.

Apple

Steve Jobs found meditation personally useful and shared it with Apple’s corporate culture. He was considered a pioneer of “mind technology” when he gave employees access to a meditation room, 30-minute daily meditation breaks, and on-site yoga and meditation classes. These were all part of a process that Steve used to reduce his own stress, gain more clarity, and enhance his creativity.

Google

One of the original software developers at Google founded a program called “search inside yourself” in 2007. As a result of this, Google offers an on-site meditation space and courses - with the strong belief, and revenue to prove, that meditation can help improve not only employee mental health and well-being, but the company’s bottom line as well.

P&G

CEO A.G. Lafley was one of the first to offer a meditation instruction program and install meditation spaces in offices. He’s quoted to say, “you cannot out-work a problem, you have to out-meditation it.”

Innocent Drinks

The quirky UK drinks company lives it’s values of health and happiness through its customers and through its employees. As well as flexible hours, free lunch and gym membership, Innocent provides a free yoga club and access to a confidential employee assistance programme to offer staff a safe place to talk 24/7. 

Sweaty Betty

This women’s activewear retailer offers a range of well being focused activities to its employees including their “reclaim your lunch break” initiative where employees are actively encouraged to take part in lunchtime yoga classes and running clubs arranged by the business. They also provide all employees with free counselling and support as well as access to education modules on the key causes of stress such as financial well being.

How can we help?

Having a positive and supportive culture in your business is no longer a nice to have - it’s a must have. Good culture is essential for attracting and retaining top talent and workplaces should enable employees to thrive not just survive 

We will tailor our approach to your business and make sure you see effective and measurable change. We can support you in offering 1-1 sessions, workshops, classes, online support and consultancy. Workshops can be tailored to combat any negative or unhelpful attitudes towards mental health and make a real impact on the culture of the business overall. 

Classes may include mindfulness and meditation to teach employees how to de-stress, centre themselves and ultimately be more productive. Benefits of meditation and mindfulness include:

• A reduction in the stress hormone cortisol which causes weight issues, fatigue, skin problems, irritability and difficulty concentrating

• Improved productivity, innovation and creativity

• Improved and less confrontational communication 

• Reduction in stress and burnout

• Heightened attention span

• Improved memory and cognitive function

To find out more about how we can help your business, call the Hampshire Hypnotherapy & Counselling Centre today and we’ll create a customised strategy for you and your employees.

*Source - Mental Health foundation

**Source - Mind.org

+Source - Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health. (2009). Briefing 40: Removing Barriers. The facts about mental health and employment. Retrieved from ohrn.nhs.uk/resource/policy/TheFactsaboutMentalHealth.pdf