Mental health issues in the workplace have an impact on employee productivity, recruitment, and retention. International health organizations and multinational corporations alike have paid attention to the issue.
Diana Han, chief health and well-being officer at Unilever, told TOI in an exclusive interview, "Since high performance is a priority, companies are now taking the lead in battling the mental health challenge to create a positive working culture, improve engagement and work satisfaction among employees."
Han attended the "Global Business Collaboration for Better Workplace Mental Health" (GBC) world leadership roundtable in order to educate over ninety C-suite executives about the issue and start discussions about it. Unilever, BP, BHP, Deloitte, HSBC, Sodexo, Visa, and WPP are the founding partners of GBC, a business-led collaboration dedicated to creating mentally healthy workplaces worldwide. She stated, "We are building a global community of business leaders committed to prioritizing workplace mental health in their own organizations and sharing learnings, insights, and good practice that will help build a road map for change in one of the major initiatives to mitigate the crisis."
Due to the significant taboo that surrounds the topic, the initial goal is to "normalize" conversations about mental health issues. In addition to fostering an open culture and reducing stigma, this will aid in the development of empathy and awareness. According to Anuradha Razdan, executive director, HR, HUL, and VP (HR), Unilever south Asia, "companies and their leaders can take proactive steps to work toward creating positive mental health, supporting one another, and reducing stress" by sharing stories and experiences. More than 100 worldwide business pioneers have marked the promise to help great emotional wellness in their associations.