NBA Health, Work and Well Being Award 2007

ClinPhone

ClinPhone accelerates drug development processes for the pharmaceutical industry. The company’s 726 staff are important to its ethos and business.

Health and wellbeing activities include: active health-promotion, access to an Occupational Health service, counselling, wellbeing clinics, work/life balance opportunities, consultation with employees on new initiatives and best practice master classes to other businesses.

The company has a low staff turnover rate (less than 5% per annum) and a low absence rate (averaging 4.5 days per person per year).

Luminus Group

This property management company recognises its 364 employees as its greatest asset. Initiatives aim to reduce absence from work due to illness, support those returning to work and provide opportunities for staff to improve their health at work.

Achievements include: top-down buy-in to the importance of staff wellbeing, employment of a health and safety adviser, provision of information to partners and contractors, flexible working opportunities, external occupational health support (including counselling and rehabilitation), a health cash plan for certain treatments, personal development opportunities, stress training and staff forums.

As a result, average absence per employee has reduced by over 18%.

Marshalls West Lane site

This manufacturing works, which employs 230 staff, is committed to maintaining a healthy and sustainable work environment beyond legal obligations. An emphasis is placed on developing and sustaining a positive safety culture and providing full benefits to agency staff.

Measures include: regular health and safety performance reviews with staff at different levels, good and varied communication to staff, the improvement of welfare facilities, healthier food options, a confidential stress line, counselling service and annual health screenings.

Since 2001, lost days have been reduced by over 80%. The current rate of absence is 2.69% and employee turnover rate is an encouraging 1.7%.

Metropolitan Police Service

The Occupational Health Unit’s The Camel’s Back training package teaches managers how to prevent, recognise and deal with stress.

A DVD uses five professionally acted, typical real-life scenarios of life and work stress to translate the HSE’s Stress Management Standards into everyday situations for managers in any organisation.

An outcome evaluation shows that more than 50% of managers have actively changed their management practices as a result of the programme. Other organisations in the public and private sectors have purchased the training package.

National Grid Wireless

This telecommunications infrastructure company employing 800 staff, has developed a positive health and safety culture, recognising that a healthy workforce is a productive one.

The company provides safety, health and wellbeing advice to contractors as a way of improving standards across the industry. New legislation and safety instructions are communicated through a range of channels including innovative webcasts and monthly ’safety tours’ where senior managers go out to the workforce and discuss safety, health and well-being issues.

NGW has increased the productivity of employees, reduced absence and turnover rates in recent years.

Remploy

Remploy, a specialist employment services group with 451 staff, created an 18 month Healthy Minds at Work project to enhance its understanding of the mental health needs of staff and customers. The project focussed on issues like stress, anxiety and depression rather than illnesses like schizophrenia.

Through the initiative, Remploy designed and tested new initiatives including mental health awareness training, a mental health support line for staff, innovative stress-busting courses, educational days and healthy eating options, training for staff in all areas of health and wellbeing and half-yearly HSE Wellbeing Audits.

Royal Mail Group

The Group employs 188,000 staff across the UK and, over the last four years, has worked to improve the health and wellbeing of these employees. Efforts have focused on three key areas: identifying and controlling work-related health hazards, sickness and rehabilitation support and promoting physical, mental and nutritional health. The company has taken an holistic approach to wellbeing through effective policies, occupational health services and employment benefits.

Royal Mail has reduced sickness absence from 6.2% in 2004 to 4.4% today and the number of accidents from 36,000 to 25,500 in the same period.

Selex Sensors & Airborne Systems

This electronic systems supplier employs 4,000 employees across the UK and has successfully addressed occupational health and safety issues, improving attrition and sickness absence rates continuously over three years.

This was achieved through a combination of: leadership from the board, an integrated approach between departments, the development of systems to manage health and safety risks and sickness absence, employee support such as free on site occupational health services, benefits including flexible working and subsidised gym membership, and good communication with staff through a variety of channels.

Shoosmiths

Shoosmiths, a law firm with 1,451 staff in 7 offices, feels that its focus on workplace wellbeing has helped it get the best out of staff.

An annual Health and Safety Plan sets goals for the year and managers are trained to recognise and manage stress. At the same time, return to work policy monitors staff sickness and employees are supported to return to work. Also offered are work-life balance opportunities, an Employee Forum and free medical checks. European Week for Safety and Health at Work is marked annually.

Results include improved morale, reduced stress and high scores in external surveys measuring employee engagement.