NEWS
MENTAL HEALTH MATTERS ATTENDEES
Chris O’Sullivan
Mental Health Foundation Dr Kris Naudts Culture Trip
Andy Washington Culture Trip
Julia Lo Bue-Said
Advantage Travel Partnership James Clarke Travelzoo
Derek Jones Kuoni
Nicky Lyle Hotelplan
Karen Morris
Travel Counsellors Gemma Garvey Cosmos
Michelle Laverick HF Holidays/AWTE John Bevan
dnata Travel Europe Belinda Vazquez Tui
help
problems that they’ve got here,” she said, adding that “a lot of the things they’re trying to escape catch up with them” when they are abroad. However, in consumer-facing
roles based overseas, it’s not only employees’ mental health problems that may need addressing. “When you think about customers,
the first thing people say when you’re having a tough time is ‘you need a holiday’,” pointed out Vazquez. “So actually, the amount that goes
on overseas from a customer point of view that those young reps have to deal with is extraordinary.” In a sector that offers relatively
low pay levels or commission-only contracts, stress related to financial worries is also a potential trigger. Derek Jones, managing director
of Kuoni and chairman of Abta LifeLine, said 80% of the problems the industry’s benevolent charity deals with are related to mental health.
travelweekly.co.uk
Staff need to know someone cares
Travel firms are implementing policies and procedures focused on looking aſter employee wellbeing and mental health, the round-table heard. Mental health champions and first aiders are
becoming commonplace as the importance of having people others can turn to if they need help or guidance is becoming recognised. Gemma Garvey, head of
HR and training at Cosmos, said: “It makes it easier for people who need support if they can go to people at all levels of the business. “Tey don’t
necessarily want to go to their manager, and not
Gemma Garvey, Cosmos
always HR as well.” For those who work out of the office, technology is being adopted to
keep people connected. “We have lots of ways of communicating digitally,” said Travel Counsellors’ Karen Morris. Morris added mental health first aiders interacting
with homeworkers “can pick up on something that might otherwise go undetected”. Communicating by phone or email means signs of
problems can oſten not be apparent, so video chat is being used by Tui, said Belinda Vazquez. “Seeing someone and their body language and how
they’re interacting with you…is quite important when you’re having those conversations,” she said. In May, Travelzoo ran a May is for Me campaign,
promoting wellbeing in the workplace with nutritional and health advice, talks in the office and walks around a nearby park. Meditation and yoga sessions were among the most
popular, said James Clarke, UK general manager at the deals publisher. “Now we can look at what we did and go further
by incorporating it into our business,” he said. Hotelplan’s most-effective wellbeing initiative was
a bring your dog to work day. “Stress levels in the office on days when pets are
there compared to when they were not were vastly different,” said Lyle.
25 JULY 2019 21 ²
MENTAL
HEALTH MATTERS
PICTURES: Steve Dunlop
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