WINNER - TOPIC 6
DESCRIPTION
“People at the heart of everything we do” is the guiding principle behind all GRS business decisions and initiatives. This focus on people is a recurrent theme, notably through the company’s approach to safety, people development, and crucially, health and wellbeing.
In the aftermath of the Covid pandemic, the GRS senior team noticed increasing numbers of wellbeing and mental health issues in the workforce. Having shared resources designed to help people to improve their mental wellbeing, it became clear that this was a bigger issue than the company had previously realised.
Consequently, in 2022 the foundations were laid to launch ‘Let’s Talk’, a wide-ranging, ongoing programme backed by groundbreaking commitments, to training and resources designed to eradicate the stigma that surrounds wellbeing and mental health.
The aim was to change the culture to one in which people could speak openly about their struggles without judgement or criticism, helping people to feel confident enough to speak out.
Many organisations treat wellbeing as a part of health and safety. GRS chose to keep wellbeing distinct, recognising that the factors that affect a person’s wellbeing may or, more likely, may not be work-related, yet can profoundly affect their ability to do their job effectively and safely.
Partnering with a specialist organisation, GRS began educating people at all levels on causation and the onset of health and mental problems. The company’s objective was to improve everyone’s awareness of their personal health and wellbeing, by investing time, effort and resources to build an extensive suite of ongoing ‘Let’s Talk’ initiatives.
This holistic approach, which everyone could feel part of, delivered a rapid acceleration in awareness and appreciation of mental and physical health. The mantra that “it’s okay to not be okay” became established and has helped numerous employees to realise positive life-changing outcomes from difficult situations.
Please watch the the video and look at the additional pdf to find out more details of the initiatives that GRS introduced.
BENEFITS
- A more focused, alert and resilient workforce.
- A happier and healthier workforce.
- Reduction in individuals engaging in unsafe acts.
- “It’s okay to not be okay” is cemented into the culture at GRS.
- In first 12 months of the campaign, there were more than 100 separate enquiries to managers or ambassadors seeking support.
- including 7 colleagues with suicidal thoughts provided with specialist support.
- Numerous employees helped to realise positive life-changing outcomes from difficult situations.
- A more productive and safer environment for all.