October 2019

support at crisis point. We need to recognise and respond when people come to us at risk of, or affected by, self-harm or suicide." The automotive industry has a high proportion of male employees and men are around three times more likely to take their own life than women, according to the Mental Health Foundation. Rachel observed: "To respond to traumatic incidents in the workplace, Ben offer a Critical Response Service to help employers support their employees. Through this service, we provide onsite trauma support which, to date, has seen us predominantly supporting employers and employees after a colleague has taken their own life. This is a stark reality for us and the industry. "With issues like this in mind, we have a responsibility. We look after our own – our automotive industry people. We’re here for anyone who works, or has worked, in the automotive industry and their family dependents when life gets tough." Individuals On what Ben does for individuals, Rachel commented: "Whatever someone is struggling with, we’re here to help. Through our free and confidential helpline and support service we can provide a range of support for individuals. Offering information, advice and guidance, as well as individually tailored support plans, we work with people to access counselling or talking therapies and other treatment as required. We also deliver in-house life coaching and mentoring and signpost individuals to additional support as needed. "For those who receive our support, we undertake a needs-based assessment to identify the root cause of the issues affecting each person. For example, we find that many individuals who seek support regarding their mental health are struggling with money or are facing issues with debt. In these cases, we support people to better manage their money and we provide financial assistance at times of crisis. "We supported 433 individuals to access counselling or talking therapies last year and we have seen a 74% increase in referrals to our mental health assessment service already in a year. A total of 97% of people we have supported through our life coaching and mentoring programme reported they are now either moving forward, taking control, confident or are in control of their situation. "Our approach to mental health isn’t just about when something goes wrong. We know that, by supporting a person’s overall wellbeing, we can better support their mental health. That’s why we have introduced online self-help support on a wide range of topics, including anxiety, depression, debt, sleep, self-care and loneliness. By providing tips, advice and tools online and via email we aim to provide much-needed support to people so they can prevent issues arising or developing into a crisis." Employers On Ben support offered to businesses, Rachel said: "Ben4Business is our partnership programme through which we work with automotive industry employers to understand their challenges and help them support the health and wellbeing of their employees. We deliver relevant workplace activities through our BenatWork team and BenTraining. "Our BenatWork team deliver onsite awareness and engagement activities, as well as workshops providing support for issues such as stress and pressure. We also provide training to support mental health in the workplace, including our CPD accredited training, Managing Mental Health in the Workplace. We also provide Mental Health First Aid training for companies, offering employees insight and tools to manage their own mental health and support their colleagues." Raising awareness Despite increasing awareness of mental health, getting the message out there can be tricky, even for Ben: "With thousands of smaller businesses in the automotive industry," pointed out Rachel, "it has always been a challenge to be able to communicate effectively to the whole sector. We work closely with trade associations to ensure our key support messages are promoted to their members and we have excellent relationships with some of the larger networks and parts distributors, but we know we are just scratching the surface. We also know that there will be people in the aftermarket sector that need our help, just as colleagues in other sectors do." She added: "We need the automotive industry to help us reach even more people. We need organisations to work with us and find a way to ensure everyone in the aftermarket sector and wider supply chain, service and repair networks knows that Ben is here for them. I would urge anyone who thinks they can help us achieve this to get in touch so we can explore opportunities together. Get in touch by visiting www.ben.org.uk/ben4business " Awareness So what do garage owners on the ground think about the issue? We spoke to David Massey from ADS Automotive, about why he has become so passionate about mental health awareness in the industry. "A lot of it stems from where I have been personally", he revealed. “I think there is a lack of awareness over the amount of pressure that young men, including my employees, are under, in terms of work responsibilities, family responsibilities, social media pressure. It takes a heavy toll. It certainly did on me. "Rather than just think about being in the situation, I thought 'if I am being affected, I am probably not the only one'. You don't have to be genius to understand and be aware of just how many suicides there are among young men. "What I have started to do is really take care of physical and mental health in the workplace, and try to make it a better, healthier environment. That comes down to the working arrangements, and being flexible. It is also down to simple things like diet and hydration level. We have started a culture change in the business about lifestyle both inside and outside of work, to make sure we are all on an even keel, both physically and mentally." We asked David if the culture of the industry was partly to blame: "I think our industry especially is susceptible to that kind of issue because of the nature of the work, and the nature of the beast as well. In our industry you have got mechanics who are very proud, and sometimes stubborn young men. The last thing you will hear them do is talk about their feelings." David is a great believer in the link 10 AFTERMARKET OCTOBER 2019 BIG ISSUE www.aftermarketonline.net You know you are in a bad way when you break your nose before you take up boxing ”