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Tuesday, June 14, 2022
CCLA’s comprehensive report on the extent and effectiveness of the FTSE 100’s strategies and initiatives with workplace mental health
The following article highlights the latest findings from CCLA’s annual Corporate Mental Health Benchmark survey. It exclusively draws on findings of the report and therefore is credited to CCLA.
CCLA Investment Fund Management is a charity fund management company based in the City of London with an office in Edinburgh. CCLA manage investments for charities, religious organisations, and the public sector.
The annual CCLA Corporate Mental Health Benchmark of the UK’s FTSE 100 (‘the benchmark’) provides a window on how 100 of the UK’s largest companies approach and manage workplace mental health, based on their published information.
Leaders of companies large or small are finding the recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic challenging for a variety of reasons. One topic that is very much a work in progress is the management of wellbeing and specifically the mental health of their staff.
This survey highlights how the UK’s top 100 are all at varying stages of managing mental health in the workplace. Historically something of a taboo subject to raise in fear of repercussions we are increasingly seeing a greater openness of staff managers and essentially CEO’s in accepting and sharing experiences of tackling their own issues.
The results of the inaugural CCLA Corporate Mental Health Benchmark UK 100 show that while the case for companies to act on mental health in the workplace is clear, more work is needed to formalise company approaches and to improve company disclosure.
44% of benchmark companies have published clear commitments to promoting a culture of openness on mental health. Yet only one in three UK company CEOs are signalling leadership commitment to mental health.
Only one-third of companies recognise the link between ‘good work’ principles and mental health. These principles include diversity, equality and inclusion, flexible working and job adjustment, and fair pay and financial security.
Two-thirds of UK companies assessed have yet to publish formal objectives aimed at improving workplace mental health.
93% acknowledge workplace mental health as an important business issue only 34% of companies publish formal objectives and targets, highlighting that many have not yet translated their policy commitments into action.
Companies need to strengthen their governance and management processes if they are to sustain a strategic focus on workplace mental health.
43% of companies demonstrate that they have assigned board oversight for mental health, but only 23% evidence that they have assigned operational management responsibility for mental health.
There is no shortage of workplace initiatives on mental health. Three-quarters of UK companies assessed have developed workplace initiatives and nine in ten companies provide access to mental health services. However, reporting on the uptake of these schemes is lagging, which makes it difficult to measure their effectiveness.
You can only improve on what you can measure and being sure of the data you’re working with. Whilst staff confidentiality is uppermost in the minds of business leaders it’s essential that effective measurement tools and processes are used to assess the extent and impact of mental health issues in the workplace.
Written by Robert Gibson, Senior Consultant - Employment Law
Robert is a Senior Consultant at Samuel Phillips and specialises in employment and business matters. He advises in relation to employment and shareholder disputes, including pensions and related issues.
