Accredited Living Wage employer, Mage Control Systems have been telling us how they have prioritised their staff’s mental health during the coronavirus crisis #InThisTogether
Just before lockdown Janet Menzies the owner and operations director of Mage Control Systems, attended the Scottish Mental Health First Aid Course. The course provides an understanding of a range of mental health issues and how people are affected by them. With most staff working from home and some on furlough, Janet realised that their mental health could be affected, especially if they were living alone.
Janet said “Some people were reporting sleeping pattern problems developing and perhaps just really struggling with not getting out. Ours is a very close team with strong friendships and we do socialise together fairly regularly.
So, to be fair and supportive, we introduced the 4 day week during lockdown so that people could do things like catch up on sleep, chill out, cook, exercise, catch up with online meetings with family, friends and importantly, with each other. It’s just the recognition that this is really tough for people and just having a more flexible situation to do all the things that might help people stay mentally and physically healthy was important. For the business, it’s sound sense. Research shows that reduced hours can be very productive.”