Sector spotlight: Employee wellbeing

Amid the Zoom fatigue, isolation and insecurity, employee wellbeing has jumped in the list of business priorities for many organisations over the lockdown.

Whilst working from home has many pros, it has led to a series of new challenges for employees and employers in terms of wellbeing. And for those still going into the workplace, employee wellbeing remains important as ever.

According to the Harvard Business Review, we are in a new era for mental health at work.

Over the past few years, we have seen conversations around mental health challenges become more normalised in the workplace and employers are increasingly expected to have comprehensive initiatives to ensure a healthy working culture.

According to the mental health charity Mind, at least one in six workers experience mental health problems such as anxiety and depression. Their research found that work is the biggest cause of stress in people’s lives – more so than debt or financial problems.

Students rally for better mental health provision at Bristol University

In Bristol, the sector is thriving and there are many organisations that are leading the way when it comes to employee wellbeing.

Following a report focusing on mental health and employment in 2017,  employers across the city came together in a One City approach and through the Thrive Bristol programme to review the recommendations and share good practices around improving workplace mental health.

When the Mental Health at Work Commitment was launched in 2019, Bristol was the first city in the country to sign up and encourage other organisations to do so, and implement the six standards.

“As a city, Bristol is deeply committed to improving the mental health of all of our citizens. The impacts of the pandemic on people’s mental health and wellbeing are likely to be far-reaching and long-lasting, so as one of the many organisations that contribute to the health and care system, we will continue to prioritise this issue,” said a spokesperson for Bristol City Council.

“When the pandemic hit, there was an early recognition that the impact of Covid-19 posed a significant risk to workforce mental health. To support businesses and the workforce, and to help mitigate the risks to employee mental health through this difficult time, Thrive at Work West of England was developed in partnership between WECA, Bristol, South Gloucestershire, Bath and North East Somerset, North Somerset, employers, unions, Mind and other agencies.”

Although there has been a lot of positive progress in this sector, there is still some way to go. Alex Serjeant from Changes Bristol commented: “There is definitely a lot more awareness in the general public and businesses as a whole, but there is still a lot of work to be done. Awareness doesn’t necessarily translate to knowledge and some businesses can be quite clumsy in the ways that they approach certain subjects.”

“This is why charities such as ourselves have been talking directly to businesses and running training sessions on mental health awareness and how to affect their workforce.”

Peer-based support groups. Credit: Changes Bristol.

And whilst the pandemic may have fast-forwarded how businesses are approaching mental health, it has been a significant challenge due to the huge volume of people that are requiring mental health services since the first lockdown.

“Coronavirus has affected everyone in their own way and it’s been an incredibly drastic life adjustment for a lot of people,” explains Alex.

“People are now needing help more than ever before and being that we are a relatively small team, we are needing to recruit and rely on a lot of volunteers to help us run our services, as well as keeping within current government guidelines.”

“I do think the increase in awareness is making a difference and people are more willing to talk about their mental health than ever before. However, there is a long road ahead and as long as the perceived stigma around mental health still remains then the problem will continue to get worse.”

Looking forward, Matthew Carlton who is the founder of Shine Workplace Wellbeing, is positive about Bristol’s progress around employee wellbeing.

“The sectors flourishing in Bristol which lend themselves to this area – creative, media, and tech industries have in general, embraced employee wellbeing more than more traditional industries and sectors.”

“The area has seen phenomenal growth in the past few years. While this will continue to rise in the next couple of years, it will flatten out in the not too distant future when businesses are more comfortable with how they look after their staff and are aware of what level of support to provide.”

At present, some businesses are almost doing too much as it’s fashionable to embrace this area; this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it does put off some employees. Within time, more balance will be achieved from the employers providing wellbeing support.”

In May 2021, Bristol24/7 hosted a panel event where experts explored mental health and wellbeing in the workplace. You can rewatch the event at www.bristol247.com/news-and-features/news/how-bristol-employers-can-become-leaders-in-workplace-wellbeing/

Main photo: Off The Record

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