EPC-UK look to enhance workforce well-being
Company increases commitment to employee welfare with Safety and Well-being Days
HAVING experienced marked achievements with their employee Safety Days in recent years, EPC-UK have made a relevant sideways move to incorporate the importance of improved workforce well-being into their programme of awareness and education to enhance employees’ lives, both in and out of the workplace.
Keen to establish a working culture where staff can be open, speak freely and feel heard, whilst learning to adopt a work/life balance that allows them to rest effectively and work more productively, EPC-UK are offering a range of activities intended to change attitudes and actions.
The programme has been combined with elements of EPC-UK’s existing employee safety course, which has, over several years, served to emphasize the significance of health and safety with relevance to all aspects of employees’ lives.
‘With the importance of self-care becoming ever more prevalent in the UK; championed by organizations such as the Mental Health Foundation and awareness events including World Mental Health Day, we’re encouraged by the changing attitudes towards implementing well-being strategies and are pleased to enable individuals across the company to benefit from guidance with anything from asking for help, to accepting and embracing who they are,’ commented Gabrielle Fasey, safety advisor at EPC-UK.
‘By adding well-being principles to our programmes of employee development, we’re helping to address the physical, mental and emotional needs of employees in the workplace to help staff feel valued, focused and further engaged in their employment purpose.
‘We’ve participated in body MOTs, discussed health, fitness and nutrition with field experts and devised realistic plans to improve well-being together, believing that improved well-being can benefit home lives and relationships, and that the positive outcomes can therefore have a ‘full-circle’ effect.’
By using the expertise of the company’s trained and appointed safety ambassadors, combined with relevant knowledge of external specialists, EPC-UK have run seminars at both their Bramble Island and Rough Close Works operations.
In addition to the body MOTs and health discussions, the programmes have included presentations on mental health awareness and a focus on person-to-person challenges in the workplace. Practical advice on making the most of company-supplied fitness watches, announcements of future fitness challenges, and a safety and well-being quiz also featured.
Challenges were also set, encouraging staff to take more interest in fellow colleagues’ lives, and to smile more; whilst safety awareness demonstrations such as chemical experiments illustrated workplace risks, and physical activities devised to encourage proactive discussion added to the programme.
‘We’re fully committed to making workforce well-being an integral part of our company’s operating ethos,’ continued Ms Fasey. ‘As such, we are looking to bring more employees from within EPC-UK onboard as well-being champions. We plan to equip new well-being champions with the skills needed to support fellow colleagues in identifying well-being issues and making improved lifestyle choices to benefit their lives now and into the future.’
