Working Minds Campaign Anniversary

The HSE launched their Working Minds campaign in November 2021 in response to a worsening of employee’s health during the pandemic. To mark the first anniversary of the campaign the HSE have announced that since starting the campaign the number of partners has more than doubled reaching 1000 signed up champions with the most recent additions being the Institution for Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) and the International Stress Management Association (ISMA).

While the HSE emphasise that significant progress has been made in tackling mental health issues in the workplace, there is still a lot of work to be done, particularly pointing to the challenges the country is facing today.

A recent report published by Deloitte estimates the cost of poor mental health to the UK at £56 billion a year, an increase of 25% since 2019. These costs come primarily in the form of lost working days with HSE statistics showing that over half of working days (17 million) are lost because of work-related stress, depression, or anxiety. This is a huge number and estimates suggest that employers see a return of £5.30 on average for every £1 that is invested into mental health.

As part of the Working Minds campaign anniversary the HSE released a podcast episode in which HSE Chair Sarah Newton was joined by Professor Sir Cary Cooper a psychologist specialising in wellbeing and wellbeing at work. The podcast highlights the importance of the Working Minds campaign to small and medium sized enterprises (SME sector).

The Working Minds campaign continues to encourage their core message of the 5 RS which are to Reach out, Recognise, Respond, Reflect and make it Routine.

Mental health and employers: The case for investment – pandemic and beyond, can be found on the Deloitte website at: https://www2.deloitte.com/uk/en/pages/consulting/articles/mental-health-and-employers-the-case-for-investment.html

If you have any questions regarding mental health in the workplace, please speak to your normal contact or get in touch with our team using the form below.