Royal Mail, Zurich, Mars and BT are among 14 employers that have pledged to improve awareness of mental health issues in the workplace, according to a report by Business in the Community (BITC).
Its Mental health: We’re ready to talk - One year on report, which has been published to coincide with Responsible Business Week (from 20-26 April), found that collective support from these 14 organisation could potentially benefit nearly half a million UK employees.
Steps taken by these employers include providing robust support for line managers and positive wellbeing programmes designed to help employees feel confident about talking openly about their mental health and other aspects of their wellbeing.
All 14 organisations have also created dedicated roles for senior leaders to help break down the stigma associated with mental ill heath, using their influence to encourage others to speak out.
The full list of employers is:
- American Express
- Anglian Water
- BT
- Bupa UK
- Friends Life
- Marks and Spencer
- Mars
- National Grid
- Proctor and Gamble
- Right Management
- Royal Mail
- Santander
- Zurich
BITC’s campaign calls upon UK organisations to demonstrate their commitment to mental wellbeing by signing the Time to Change pledge to end mental health discrimination.
Shaun Davis, group director of safety, health, wellbeing and sustainability at Royal Mail Group, said: “As there as been such a huge stigma around disclosing mental heath conditions for so many years, we knew that we were not going to change the situation overnight.
“But signing the Time to Change pledge has enabled us to make that all-important first step by starting the public conversation and helping people to become more comfortable discussing these issues.
“Having the support of our senior leaders and chief executive has been crucial. It is essential that all organisations do their best to secure this senior-level support in order to help the message resonate with as many people as possible.”
Louise Aston, wellbeing campaign director at BITC, added: “Last year, Business in the Community launched its mental health campaign to help end the suffering and injustice caused by the stigma around mental ill-health, through the public support of leading organisations across a wide range of different sectors.
“This campaign is significant because it is has been led through a desire from businesses to come together to help end one of the biggest social injustices of our time and create parity between mental and physical health. The progress we’ve seen is truly exciting.”
