‘There needs to be more understanding’
MENTAL health issues affect millions of people across the country and impact on businesses and employees alike – yet often remains a taboo subject in the workplace.
Approximately one in four people in the UK experience a mental health problem each year, but despite this many fear talking about the issue over concerns about disciplinary procedures, demotion or dismissal.
To mark World Mental Health Day, we spoke to local entrepreneurs and businesses to see what more can be done to tackle the perceived stigma attached to mental health issues.
Gareth Jones, managing director of UK Leisure Living in Mochdre, spoke about living with his own anxiety and helping his workforce.
He said: “I am very aware of ensuring my staff take care of their mental health.
“I think all business owners / managers need to ensure people go home and switch off and have downtime to reduce stress. I ensure my team take time off if they are working excessive hours.
“I am honest enough to admit I suffer from stress anxiety and have done for around 18 months.
“It’s something I have to manage and one day hopefully it will disappear but the symptoms can be frightening.
“It’s hard as a male to admit this, but I hope I can educate people going forward too.
“I have an open door policy with all issues in my business and would hope that my staff if they were struggling would talk to me.
“I even have my own foundation that puts on courses to help with health and wellbeing and we will be running some in the new year.
“If you are a business owner with a staff member with a mental health issue, you need to be tolerant to their needs and how you can help them.
“This is exactly what I have done in the past with staff who have worked for me.”
Oliver Thomas, 23, who runs three businesses in Conwy and Bangor, said being open, honest and understanding was the key to tackling mental health issues in the workplace.
Mr Thomas, whose firms include Yiver and Yiver Leasing, said: “We have to get rid of the stigma of mental health. We have to be open and take the time to have real conversations to see how people are feeling.
“There needs to be more understanding.
“If someone had a broken leg you wouldn’t get them to drive to a job.
“But it is the same if someone is struggling with anxiety, you shouldn’t send them out selling that day. We need to be in a position where people can tell you how they are feeling, everyone will benefit.
“I have had an employee who quit and it was only later I found out they were dealing with a very traumatic experience that had happened a few months earlier.
“I wish they had been able to speak with me.”
Mr Thomas has been an entrepreneur since leaving school but says the “glamour” associated with this title is misleading.
He said: “With social media, people are seeing all the successes and awards but not always hearing about people struggling and the hard slog. Being an entrepreneur can be very lonely and stressful and we all need to be more honest about this.”
Wrexham phone-answering firm Moneypenny said it has put staff at the heart of what they do in the belief it will improve the physical and mental health of workers.
Managing director, Joanna Swash, said: “We try to ensure going to work is a pleasure and this is key to staff wellbeing. We have never done anything conventionally so asked our staff to help us build our new HQ.
“We wanted to build a workplace our staff loved and enjoyed coming to every day to keep them mentally happy and motivated.”
She said the pub, sun terrace, gym, seven-acre grounds and the restaurant were all important elements in this.
They also work hard to encourage socialising between the team, with trips out, and discouraging eating at desks, as well as providing quiet reading corners for people wanting peace.
Mike Learmond, FSB’s North Wales senior development manager, said: “Responsible business owners are recognising that they need to understand and look for the signs of mental health issues in their employees.
“Research from FSB’s medical and health advice service shows the number of small businesses seeking mental health advice has doubled in the last five years.
“Wellbeing can help increase our productivity, improve our performance and reduce absenteeism. There is a clear business case, however – the benefits are felt just as much in our health as individuals, but also by our communities and the wider economy.
“Small business owners can play a vital role in improving the lives of their employees through a variety of actions – from innovative, new ideas to simple steps such as encouraging more activity and regular breaks. There’s no ‘one size fits all’ approach, and not every idea will be suitable for every business.
“We are, however, seeing some real innovation from small business owners for themselves and their teams. It is important they find the ideas that work for their business, and their staff.”
Stress, anxiety, and other mental health issues are becoming an increasing problem in workplaces across North Wales, says Alison Thomas, operational director at pioneering social enterprise RCS Wales (Rhyl City Strategy).
The good news is there is practical support out there to support staff and employers when people are struggling, and even help prevent problems arising in the first place, says Ms Thomas.
RCS Wales was set up 10 years ago to promote wellbeing at work across North Wales and offers support to employers and employees in Conwy, Denbighshire, Anglesey and Gwynedd, from bases in Rhyl and Bangor. The organisation’s flagship In Work support programme, partfunded by the European Social Fund through the Welsh Government, has helped more than 2,000 people return to work after sickness absence, since January 2016.
“One of our key aims is to encourage the development of healthy, happy workplaces where employees can flourish and reach their full potential,” said Ms Thomas.
“Having staff who are not flourishing can affect productivity and profitability, and can also have an impact on the happiness and effectiveness of the rest of the workforce. It is worth investing time in learning the techniques to support staff to reduce sickness absence and address common health problems attendance or productivity.”