Tyler Grange has implemented a range of initiatives to ensure it fully supports its employees’ health and wellbeing at no cost to its workforce.
The environmental consultancy provides an employee assistance programme to all of its 72 members of staff, which offers financial and wellbeing advice, second opinion on medical diagnoses, access to online physiotherapists and counselling services, among other support. Mental wellbeing support is an important factor at Tyler Grange, so it also offers access to psychologists, paid for by the employer, says Helen Brittain, company secretary and HR lead. “We engage two psychologists who work with us one day a month,” Brittain explains. “Anybody in the business can book an hour with them whenever they want to, and it doesn’t have to be a work-related issue that they want to talk about.”
The psychologists also deliver seminars to the organisation on a range of topics, which, in the past, have focused on imposter syndrome, procrastination, self worth and time management.
The organisation also has a team of six mental health first aiders to offer additional support if employees need it. All of its six offices are dog friendly, with established ‘petiquette’ policies, which can also bolster staff wellbeing.
The nature of the organisation means that Tyler Grange employees may work odd or unsociable hours, perhaps while surveying a specific species out on site, so the employer has developed an app for employees to monitor their fatigue and wellbeing. The TG Alertness App was developed as a means of combating fatigue and ensuring that employees are not overworking or at risk of burnout. The app tracks the factors that lead to fatigue and employees are encouraged to input how much sleep they have had and how they are feeling. The results are collated anonymously but allows the employer to monitor trends.
The app is an important tool for the organisation to assess how its four-day working week model affects employees. In December 2022, Tyler Grange announced that after a successful trial, it has permanently implemented a four-day working week. “Our happiness has definitely increased, our sickness and absenteeism reduced, and our efficiency has increased,” explains Brittain.
While the initiatives at Tyler Grange come at no cost to staff, they are focused on building the resilience of its people. “We have to consider everyone we work with and make sure that they are happy,” Brittain says. “Thanks to all of the extra help we can draw on it does mean that we’ve been able to build some very resilient people and help them to cope when it comes to extreme pressure.”