With an estimated one in eight people globally living with a mental disorder (WHO, 2022), now is the time to get people talking about mental health. World Mental Health Day is a great opportunity for businesses to engage their employees in the conversation.

In recent years, we have seen positive steps made by employers to consider their people’s mental health as well as their physical health, and to make conversations about mental health more commonplace at work.

However, a bigger cultural shift is needed within businesses to make sure an environment is created where mental health can be discussed openly without fear of judgement.

To do this, all employees, irrelevant of seniority or mental health experience, need further education to understand what mental health is, how to look after your own mental health, to recognise the signs of poor mental health and to offer support to others who are struggling.

We have worked closely with many clients to embed a culture where wellbeing is at the forefront of decisions and treated with the same level of importance as safety, production and quality.

This World Mental Health Day, we have worked closely with Hitachi Rail to provide a range of materials to celebrate the day and encourage all teams globally to take care of their mental health. By visibly displaying the importance of mental health and promoting safe team discussions, they are well on the way to creating an environment where everyone feels supported to take care of their mental wellbeing.