From Pain To Gain : The London Healthy Workplace Charter

In 2015, 30.4 million working days were lost due to self-reported work-related illness or injury:

•  25.9 million days due to work-related illness
•  4.5 million days due to workplace injury.
• Stress, depression or anxiety and musculoskeletal disorders accounted for the majority of days lost due to work-related ill health.
• The average days lost per case for stress, depression or anxiety (24 days) was higher than  for musculoskeletal disorders (16 days). 1 

As most employees spend at least 8 hours a day, five days a week at work; they spend more time with their work colleagues than they do with family members. The impact of work- related illnesses, can significantly affect their family life, as well as their finances.  

We also hear news, about the critical position the National Health Service is in. Trusts do not have enough funds to deliver all the services they used to run in the past, and therefore critical decisions need to be made around patient care. Waiting lists are increasing and budgets are decreasing.

What can employers do to improve the wellbeing of their staff and therefore reduce the number of days that employees are out due to work- related illnesses?  

The London Healthy Workplace Charter

I first heard about this charter as I exhibited my business, ‘Listening To Your Voice’ at the Hammersmith and Fulham Business Expo. The borough had a big display to educate businesses about the benefits of looking after the wellbeing of their staff. This is also the focus of my business. Employees are one of the highest costing assets that most businesses have. So what are the benefits of the London Healthy Workplace Charter?

The London Healthy Workplace Charter is backed by the Mayor of London. More than 260,000 employees have benefited from over 140 organisations including small business, large corporations or public sector organisations.


What Are The Benefits Of Having The Charter For Your Business?

•  Increased level of engagement and motivation for staff at work.
•  Increased productivity, and a higher percentage of staff retention which will reduce recruitment cost.
• Better communication at work, and improved health and wellbeing of all members of staff.
• Better work-life balance and reduced stress.
•  Gain the reputation of being a leading employer who delivers a happier work environment.

Working as a teacher, one day at school, the behaviour of the students was the worst that I had experienced in all my 25 years of teaching. I went to make a phone call to request some disruptive students be removed from my class. Instead of making the call, I found myself having an emotional meltdown. I was crying and felt I was going to drop to the floor. I received help from a colleague who put me in a place of safety and called for assistance. The next day I awoke, and found myself afraid to go to work. A job that I had done for 25 years with several roles of responsibility, including being a deputy headteacher with day to day management of a school. I went to see my doctor and had another emotional meltdown. My doctor found it hard to believe that this was due to stress at work. He had seen me battle for years with lupus, an autoimmune illness, but he had never seen me in this state. He insisted that I received help, which I did from a trained therapist.

 

What Happened? What Was The Outcome?

During sessions with the therapist, I realised I had a choice to make. I could take my school to tribunal or I could use the experiences gained in a positive way, to prevent others having to go through a similar experience. I choose to do the latter. Working with my business advisor, I was encouraged to contact the office of The Mayor of London, to find out more about the charter. As I spoke with key staff they encouraged me to apply to become a verifier. I applied and now I can say that I am a verifier of the charter. I now, together, with a team, promote the benefits of the charter and the looking after of yourself and your employees.


References:
 
(1)    http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/dayslost.htm

(2)   https://www.listeningtoyourvoice.co.uk/

(3)   https://www.london.gov.uk/what-we-do/health/healthy-workplace-charter