REAL LIVESMental health More than tea a Ending the stigma of mental health at work


Global confectionery giant Pladis has teamed up with Unite to improve mental health awareness and treatment amongst its 4,600 UK and Irish staff.


Pladis, which owns United Biscuits, has signed up to the Time to Change pledge run by the mental health charities Mind and Rethink Mental Illness.


The scheme challenges the stigma surrounding mental health to better enable those suffering from mental illness to escape discrimination and access support.


A quarter of British workers each year are affected by conditions such as anxiety, depression and stress – costing businesses an average of £1,035 for every employee. While mental ill-health is the leading cause of sickness absence from work, 95 per cent of staff who call in sick because of it give a different reason, according to a Time to Change.


As part of the effort to improve the perception of mental health at the company, Unite, along with the GMB, USDAW and BAFWU unions, worked closely with Pladis to put a mental health ambassador in each of the firm’s 13 sites in the UK and Ireland.


Unite helped to define the training and select and support the ambassadors.


United Biscuits Unite convenor Matt Gould said, “There was a recognition from both the company and the union that we need to do something not just about the stigma attached to mental health but the acceptance of mental health as an issue in the workplace.


“The unions sat down with the management to look at what national standards on mental health provision


there are so we could set a bench mark against them.


“Mental health ambassadors were then trained at each site and their position highlighted to all the staff. So now because they’ve had a certain level of training if one of their colleagues needs help they can be the first port of call.”


Support Pladis is also providing group training for mental health awareness and guidance for workplace stress and has set up a round-the-clock telephone support line and counselling services for staff and their families.


Pladis UK and Ireland managing director, Jon Eggleton, said the firm was committed to offering employees a safe and inclusive work environment.


He said, “Mental health is a big part of our agenda and we are determined to do our part to ensure all our employees are well supported and have equal opportunities.


“Through our health and wellbeing programme, we promise to further tackle the discrimination associated with mental health by raising awareness and creating a platform for our employees to talk openly about this significant issue.


“Signing this pledge with Time to Change is a major step forwards in our journey to building a mentally healthy workforce.”


With research from Community Care and the BBC finding that funding in England for NHS mental health trusts fell by £600m in the five years up to 2016, mental health initiatives by employers are more in need than ever.


Director of Time to Change, Sue Baker OBE, praised Pladis


for 26 uniteWORKS Summer 2017 joining other


organisations – including Heineken, Southern Water and many NHS trusts, local authorities and universities – for committing to the scheme.


She said, “It’s crucial that UK employers support staff at all levels to open up, to talk and to listen. Too many people with mental health problems are made to feel worthless and alone in a work setting.


“Every person’s attitude makes a difference and so it’s fantastic to see companies like Pladis taking the lead and making a commitment that will ultimately help to improve its productivity and staff retention and create a happy and engaged workforce.”


Since Time to Change began in 2007, the initiative has reached millions of people throughout the UK. The charity has commissioned a survey each year to gauge national attitudes towards mental health problems.


The charity found that between 2008 and 2016 positive attitudes towards mental health increased by 9.6 per cent – amounting to an estimated 4.1m people with a better understanding of mental health.


People’s willingness to live with, work with and continue a relationship with someone with mental health problems also improved by 11 per cent.


Over the same period the charity has seen reports of discrimination fall, with those that do experience prejudice reporting that it does not affect as many areas of their lives.


A Time to Change survey of people accessing specialist mental health services found that between 2009 and 2014 there was a 5.6 percent increase in those reporting no


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