Published on: 02 December 2021
Mental health is the number one reason cited for sick days in the UK, and is on the rise.
On 26 November, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) released a new campaign called Working Minds.
The Working Minds campaign brings together a range of tools and support to help businesses and workers understand the best ways to prevent work-related stress and encourage good mental health. The manufacturing sector will be one of five sectors which will be specifically targeted in this new campaign; aimed at helping small businesses with easy to implement advice, including small steps to introduce the principles of the stress management standards.
The campaign was launched by Sarah Albon, Chief Executive of HSE. Working Minds will raise awareness about how to recognise and respond to the signs of stress to protect workers and support good mental health to help people to stay well.
The HSE will be working with partner organisations such as Composites UK, Civil Engineering Contractors Association, Mind, Acas and Mates in Mind, providing businesses with the relevant information and practical tools with helping to recognise and respond to the signs of work-related stress in the manufacturing industry, making it as routine as managing safety. As work-related stress is now the number one cause of employment sickness and absence due to workload pressures, tight timescales, too much responsibility and a lack of managerial support.
You can find the HSE’s e-Bulletin for the Working Minds mental health campaign here, where you can also share your experiences of work-related stress. By sharing your experience you will be helping others to understand the real-life impacts of these issues.