Helen Hewett

“I, like so many others, would like to share my condolences and pay my respects to my dear friend Helen Hewett. Not only was she the Founder of SuperFriend but she was an incredible woman – a pioneer and an inspiration to many. Helen simply had a passion for improving people’s lives.

Through her creative vision and incredible foresight, she created a mental health foundation that has helped thousands of Australian workers improve their mental health and wellbeing. As a natural advocate with an innate ability to bring people together, Helen has made a tremendous difference over the years in raising awareness and support for mental health in the workplace. For that, among so many of her other great achievements, Helen will always be remembered.

On behalf of SuperFriend, we would like to thank Helen for being so incredibly kind, genuine and passionate. We are forever grateful for the much-needed foundation she has created and the legacy she leaves behind. We pass on our condolences to Helen’s family and friends during these sad times”.

By Margo Lydon, CEO

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The Expert Advisory Committee (EAC) acts as an advisory and consultative committee to the SuperFriend board and management, overseeing the development and evaluation of SuperFriend’s innovative solutions.

SuperFriend CEO, Margo Lydon commented on the new appointments: “We are thrilled to welcome Katherine and Maria to the team, who both have a wealth of valuable experiences and knowledge in not just the finance space, but with mental health and wellbeing support too.

Offering nearly 25 years’ experience in the superannuation industry in a variety of management and customer-facing roles, Katherine will bring a Trustee lens to the Committee, as well as a unique insight into the meat worker sector, enabling her to speak directly on the high-risk cohort of members”, Margo said.

As a strong advocate for mental health, Katherine is delighted by the appointment. She said: “Over the years, experience has enhanced my understanding of the importance of good mental health; especially for vulnerable members of our community. Having partnered with SuperFriend for many years, used their services and engaged in their wellbeing programs with my teams, I truly understand the enormous value SuperFriend brings to the pursuit of a mentally healthy workforce.

I’m honored to be part of an organisation that makes such a difference”, Katherine concluded.

Following several years as a practicing lawyer with Ebsworth & Ebsworth, then Ashurst, Maria Falas has more than 20 years’ experience in the financial services industry, including three years as Head of Mental Health & Wellness at ANZ Wealth and Zurich.

Winner of last year’s Women in Finance Wellness Program, Maria rejoins the Expert Advisory Committee in her new position as a Non-Partner Industry Representative.

CEO, Margo Lydon said: “We’re so pleased to welcome Maria back to the team – having been a tireless advocate in the financial services sector for mental health awareness and support services over several years working closely with SuperFriend, Maria has led many industry-first initiatives with great success.”

Maria concluded: “I’m excited to once again join the committee and use my industry insight to help contribute to strategic foresight and future-focused thinking, while continuing to advocate for mental health and wellbeing support.”

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Elizabeth Proust

SuperFriend, the national workplace mental health and wellbeing organisation, has appointed leading business figure Elizabeth Proust as the new Chairperson to its Board of Directors.

Bringing over 30 years’ experience in leadership roles across private and public sectors in Australia, Ms Proust has an outstanding record of change management programs in large and diverse organisations.

With eight years’ experience with the ANZ Banking group, including four years as Managing Director of Esanda (ANZ’s asset finance company), Ms Proust has demonstrated an exceptional ability to turn around organisations, making major changes and efficiencies, while delivering customer services.  In this role, Ms Proust was a member of the ANZ Management Board, and ANZ’s most senior woman.

She has prior board experience as the Chairperson of a Federal Government Statutory Authority, and as a Director of various publicly listed companies.  Ms Proust was also made an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2010 for her service to the community through contributions to the arts, charities, and educational bodies.

SuperFriend Chief Executive Margo Lydon said SuperFriend was delighted to announce Ms Proust’s appointment, acknowledging that her extensive leadership and business experience provides her with excellent insights for SuperFriend’s continued evolution.

“We are excited to welcome Elizabeth as our new chairperson, she has a rich history of work in charitable, university and business boards, giving her a unique perspective on SuperFriend’s policies and initiatives to improve mental health in Australian workplaces.”

“With such a vast industry experience, Elizabeth has established herself a dynamic leader with strong strategic skills who has a successful track record for change management programs in diverse organisations.” Ms Lydon added.

Commenting on her appointment, Ms Proust said: “I am greatly looking forward to working with SuperFriend to help improve the mental health and safety of Australian workplaces, through implementing accessible initiatives and policies to create thriving environments for all people”.

Ms Proust will take over from Cbus Chief Executive David Atkin who served as the SuperFriend Chairman for over three years.

“SuperFriend and Cbus will continue to have a close relationship and we thank David for his outstanding contribution to our continued growth and success. We wish David the very best in his next career step and look forward to seeing what he does next,” Ms Lydon concluded.

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Margo Lydon

Two in three working Australian women reported experiencing a mental health condition, with women under 25 years the worst affected (73.3%). Women’s personal wellbeing declined significantly more than men during the global pandemic (27.5% vs 20.9%), according to research released today by SuperFriend.

Using data from Australia’s largest workplace mental health study, Indicators of a Thriving Workplace, Gender Identity Spotlight 2020 is a snapshot of mental health and wellbeing in the Australian workforce based on their gender.

The report found that women under 25 years have the most experience with mental health conditions experienced greater job insecurity than men in the last year (27.1% vs 25.7%). While the pandemic proved to be a turbulent time for many working Australians, more women ended up working fewer hours than usual, but not by choice (26.7% vs 22.1% for men).

The proportion of Australian workers who found themselves with no paid work peaked in April, with women impacted nearly twice as much as men (11.3% vs 6.9%).

Unsurprisingly, a higher number of women considered switching careers to a different industry and undertook work-related study or training, when compared to men.

Commenting on the findings, SuperFriend CEO, Margo Lydon, said: “The events of 2020 have turned workplaces upside down, but the pandemic has been particularly hard on women. It has intensified the challenges that women already faced, such as balancing paid work and carers’ responsibilities, and the emotional toll of financial insecurity, significantly impacting their mental health and wellbeing.”

Impact on productivity was profound 

Women’s productivity was more deeply impacted by the pandemic than men’s, both positively and negatively.

On one hand, their productivity was boosted substantially more than men’s due to relaxed expectations around how they should look at work.

Nearly 35% of women said their productivity improved by wearing more comfortable clothes, with 28.5% reporting a productivity boost due to relaxed grooming expectations (both around 10 percentage points higher than men).

“For many women, particularly those in corporate environments, getting dressed for work can be an expensive and time-consuming affair. According to a grooming survey, women spend an average of 27 minutes per day getting ready for work, which equates to 10 full working days across the year^[1]!

“Workplaces pivoting to a work-from-home set up overnight turned out to be a blessing in disguise for many of us. Remote work reduced or eliminated commuting times substantially, boosting productivity for two in five women and freeing up time to exercise, sleep and connect with loved ones instead,” said Ms Lydon.

On the flip side, the report found that women’s productivity was hindered more than men’s due to COVID-specific anxiety and job security concerns. 20.2% of women reported their productivity was negatively impacted by family caring responsibilities compared to 16% of men.

“With homeschooling, heightened care needs of older persons and stress associated with general living expenses, the pandemic and lockdowns were not experienced equally.

“Financial insecurity, in particular, has a cumulative impact over time. Fewer women than men in our survey were truly confident that they will have enough superannuation and other resources to comfortably retire^[2],” she added.

Inaction more problematic for women

According to the report, workplaces are closer to thriving for men than women across every domain, and the gap is widening. 

47.4% of men report their workplace is taking tangible action in 2020 (up from 43.9% in 2019), compared to only 42% of women (down from 42.4%).

Women are trailing behind men on 85% of the 40 indicators of a thriving workplace, up from 65% in 2019. Men working part-time recorded the strongest increase in their overall thriving workplace score (3.2 points), whereas women working casually recorded the weakest gain (1.3 points).

Therefore, its unsurprising that women are less optimistic than men that their workplace will invest in mental health and wellbeing in the near future, and that the state of mental health and wellbeing in their workplace will improve anytime soon.

Ms Lydon confirmed the widest gap was in the policy domain, as declining numbers of women believe that their organisation has effective policies and practices against workplace bullying and harassment.

Women consider the biggest barrier to investing in workplace mental health is that there are ‘more important business issues to address’, and this perception has grown over the last year.

“This highlights a real need for organisations to take greater steps to make their workplaces more supportive, inclusive and accountable spaces for all workers.

“Every crisis presents an opportunity. There are some clear opportunities for employers to better engage with their female workforce through a more flexible and empathetic approach.

“This is our call to corporate Australia. Through the years, we’ve made some great strides in gender diversity and inclusion, with more women in the workforce and in leadership roles. Let’s not allow COVID or any other force to take that away from us,” she concluded.

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Margo Lydon

New research launched yesterday by national workplace mental health organisation, SuperFriend, highlights a remarkable improvement in the mental health of financial and insurance services workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic, following a challenging few years in the wake of the Senate Inquiry into Insurance and Financial Services Royal Commission.

Using data from Australia’s largest workplace mental health study, Indicators of a Thriving Workplace, Spotlight on the Financial and Insurance Industry 2020 is a snapshot of mental health and wellbeing in the Australian financial and insurance services workforce.

The report found that the industry’s overall thriving workplace score leapt to the second highest in 2020, from just sixth in 2019 (up by 3.3 points to 67.6 out of 100). All five domains of thriving workplaces (connectedness, leadership, policy, culture and capability) showed improvement, with the policy domain recording the strongest improvement.

The study found that during 2020, financial and insurance services workers were in high demand to respond to Government measures designed to ease the financial hardship faced by many Australians, such as the early release of super scheme, mortgage deferrals and reductions, and broader legislative changes, with many working more hours than ever, often by choice.

Sector workers experienced the largest increases in positive stress compared with workers in other industries (up 3.8pp). Positive stress, also known as ‘eustress’, is a short-term motivator that focuses energy and improves performance. The sector also showed the strongest productivity gains of any industry during the pandemic (up 9.8pp since February to 35.6%).

Commenting on the findings, SuperFriend CEO Margo Lydon said: “It is a good news story for the financial and insurance services industry from a mental health perspective, particularly after the long-term scrutiny the industry endured following the Senate Inquiry into Insurance and the Financial Services Royal Commission, and the impact these events and subsequent changes had on the sector workers’ wellbeing. The industry appears to be rallying and recovering from within, with its people in demand throughout the pandemic and subsequent recession.

“During the height of the pandemic, the industry embraced the challenge of providing much-needed support to customers facing financial uncertainty, stepping in as one of the many essential services vital to Australia’s support and recovery,” she added.

Reflecting on the research findings, AustralianSuper’s Group Executive, Membership, Rose Kerlin said, “Investing in people through initiatives like our SuperFriend partnership has helped equip them with vital wellbeing and resilience skills. Working on the financial services frontline to support members with early access to super and concerns about market volatility was both challenging and rewarding – but we can only provide this support if our people are at their best.

“The industry banded together with a strong sense of shared purpose to help meet member needs effectively. None of us would want to go through another 2020, but it has certainly reminded us all of what’s important for both members and colleagues,” she added.

Strong employer support in difficult times

More than half (52.4%) of financial and insurance industry workers report that their workplace has taken tangible action to improve workers’ mental health and wellbeing, making it the third most action-oriented industry in Australia, reflecting the industry’s investments in this area over recent years.

The industry shares the top spot of being most supportive of workers’ mental health and wellbeing, with over 60% describing their workplace as ‘supportive’ or ‘extremely supportive’, alongside information, media and telecommunications industry.

Unsurprisingly, all this has led to improved staff retention with 42% planning to ‘definitely stay’ with their employer over the next year.

Ms Lydon believes increased retention is also influenced by financial security during uncertain economic times. More than three-quarters of workers believe their workplace is in a good financial position, also offering high levels of job security for the period.

According to the report, nearly 86% of financial services workers also believe their workplace is highly committed to preventing the spread of COVID-19, second only to the health care and social assistance industry.

Working remotely a winner

Workers in the sector identified at least one positive work-related change that they would like to continue in the future. Feeling more valued and respected for their work, better communication and work relationships, and more flexible approaches to working emerged as most popular choices.

Workers responding to the survey commented that the ability to work remotely, being trusted to work flexibly, saving time and money traveling to work, more time for exercise or even getting away from office politics were all important factors in improving their mental health and wellbeing.

“2020 marked a significant change in how the financial services industry is perceived, and its contribution to the community was recognised throughout the raft of challenges that unfolded during the year.

“This sense of recognition coupled with action-oriented leadership has clearly resulted in good mental health outcomes, and we hope for this to be a tipping point in the industry’s wellbeing now and into the future,” Ms Lydon concluded.

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Margo Lydon

SuperFriend welcomes the release of the highly anticipated final report from the Productivity Commission Inquiry into Mental Health, and commends the Commission for recognising the need for an improved mental health system with a broader approach to non-clinical settings such as workplaces, education, justice and community settings.

SuperFriend believes that creating a person-centred approach focused on prevention, early support, increased use of non-clinical interventions, and increased treatment sessions and options will help prevent people from becoming so unwell that they need crisis support, taking pressure off the clinical system and improving mental health outcomes.

Commenting on the report released yesterday, Margo Lydon, SuperFriend Chief Executive Officer said: “We fully support the Commission’s aim to refocus the mental health system with a strong preventative lens, highlighting the need for improved evaluation and transparent reporting.

“The Report shows the Government’s recognition that Australia needs an integrated and system-wide approach to improve mental health – making it everyone’s business.”

Workplace mental health a priority

Recognising that workplaces are a critical factor in shaping a person’s mental health, the report calls out the need for elevating the importance of psychological health and safety in the workplace, and no-liability clinical treatment for workers’ compensation claims.

SuperFriend’s recently released Indicators of a Thriving Workplace Report reinforced that work and workplaces are a positive contributing factor to a person’s social connections and mental health, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Investing in workplace mental health delivers positive returns for employees and the business, which has flow on positive effects for our communities.. In light of this, employers taking action by prioritising workplace mental health combined with collaborative and better coordinated policy action from Governments, will hopefully mark a positive tide of change,” added Ms Lydon.

Critical role of the insurance sector

The report calls out the need for improved training and education about mental illness across the insurance sector. It also highlights opportunities for the insurance sector to improve the way it collects information about, and relating to, people with mental illness.

SuperFriend acknowledges the sector’s opportunities to refine and improve how it interacts with people with mental illness and welcomes the recommendation for capability uplift across the industry. Its Indicators of a Thriving Workplace research clearly shows that this is likely to have a two-fold positive affect – improving customer experiences when dealing with life insurers and improving cultures within those organisations.

“We look forward to working with our industry partners and peak bodies to refine insurance sector training requirements, ensuring an improved understanding of mental illness across the sector,” confirmed Ms Lydon.

SuperFriend also extends its support to ASIC to ensure that the insurance industry removes blanket exclusions, differentiates between different types of mental illness, and implements standardised definitions of mental illness, welcoming the opportunity to support the regulator and the industry in designing and implementing these changes.

SuperFriend will also work with the insurance industry should the Australian Law Reform Commission review whether protocols for insurer access to clinical records have led to better targeted requests for clinical information, and whether they protect people with clinical histories that include seeking psychological treatment or counselling.

Lastly, SuperFriend supports the proposal that the Government should review the regulations preventing health insurers from funding community-based mental healthcare activities, permitting life insurers to fund mental health treatments for their insurance clients on a discretionary basis. This is a very positive step forward.

“An improved and more connected mental health system delivered by multi-disciplinary clinical and non-clinical trained staff to support consumers, carers and service providers is a welcomed approach to help people lead fulfilling lives and access the support they need, when they need it,” concluded Ms Lydon.

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Margo Lydon

Australia’s largest workplace mental health study found that three in five workers experienced a mental health condition this year (up almost 9 percentage points from 2019), with many struggling for the first time during the pandemic.

The new research, released today by SuperFriend, also showed clear benefits of improved financial and mental health outcomes for workers at organisations that invest in mental health initiatives, but more than half of Australia’s workers (55.1%) report their workplace is taking no action.

SuperFriend, the national mental health organisation that partners with the superannuation and insurance industries, surveyed 10,338 Australian workers for the annual Indicators of a Thriving Workplace study. The research, now in its sixth year, measures and tracks the current state of mental health and wellbeing in Australian workplaces against a desired state. This year the study also includes a strong focus on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Australia’s workforce.

The 2020 national workplace mental health and wellbeing index score increased to 65.1 out of 100^[1], after remaining steady for the previous two years at 62.7.

Commenting on the findings, SuperFriend CEO, Margo Lydon said: “The improvement in the overall score is surprising, but welcome news in these extraordinary times.

“Australia’s workplaces have moved closer to thriving over the last year. While this improvement may seem counter-intuitive during such turbulent times, it infers two things: work is generally good for our social connections and mental health, and long-term sustained efforts to improve workplace mental health are starting to gain traction.”

Unexpected COVID benefits: Connectedness, productivity, and access to leaders

The research found that Australian workers are feeling more connected than ever before, particularly in organisations where everyone worked remotely for at least a month since March 2020, compared to those who worked on-site (71.3 vs 67.6 out of 100).

There has also been a surprising increase in the number of people who have become more productive throughout this period (up 4 percentage points from February to 29.4% in June). The most popular productivity boosters were identified as “Reduced commute to work” (38.4%), “More comfortable clothing” (31.3%) and “Flexible work hours” (29.4%).

“Who’d have thought a pandemic which introduced ‘social distancing’ as a behaviour norm would make us feel more connected at work?” Ms Lydon said.

“A key positive coming from this crisis is the surge in the sense of shared purpose. Workplaces are increasingly feeling like communities where people support each other beyond getting the job done.

“Time usually spent getting ready for work, commuting and attending unnecessary meetings is instead spent with loved ones, exercising, pursuing personal interests or getting more sleep – all known factors to improve wellbeing and increase productivity,” she added.

COVID-19 has “turbocharged leadership changes at Australian workplaces” according to Ms Lydon, particularly at organisations that are taking tangible action to improve workplace mental health and wellbeing. “We know that leaders’ work and travel habits have shifted substantially in the wake of COVID-19, creating space and time for more accessibility, which also had a big impact.”

Three in five employees (58.9%) working in action-oriented businesses confirmed that leadership has improved since March with leaders being more accessible when needed and acting as champions for their teams (versus 1.7% in less committed workplaces).

“For leaders, this is a fantastic opportunity to get to know their staff better, practice self-reflection, build resilience and trust to effectively reduce worker frustration and stress and create happier, healthier workplaces,” Ms Lydon added.

Concerning hot spots: Casual and insecure work and stigma

The Thriving Workplace research found that casual workers are the furthest from thriving, and the gap has widened due to COVID-19. As an example, the Culture index score was 66.0 for full-time workers, compared with only 62.0 for casuals. Casual workers also reported persistent declines in respect and inclusiveness over three consecutive years.

“This is hugely concerning” said to Ms Lydon. “Over the last few years of conducting this research, we have noticed a persistent decline in outcomes for casual workers and industries with higher casualised workforces. Casual workers have very little job security, and fewer opportunities to access workplace mental health programs and resources compared with their securely employed peers. Accommodation, food services and arts and recreation workers have been particularly hard hit because of this.”

Further, while organisational supportiveness of employee mental health and wellbeing has improved since last year (up 8.8pp to 51.9%), stigma around other issues has emerged, such as physical health and racism.

6.6% of workers reported that they have experienced stigma around physical health issues (cold and flu symptoms) this year, and 5.1% experienced racism in the workplace. These workers also have overall thriving workplace scores that are well below the national average of 65.1 out of 100 (54.7 and 56.6, respectively).

“It’s encouraging to see there’s more support for workplace mental health, which may be partly due to an increased public dialogue about mental health and wellbeing since the beginning of the pandemic, and the elevated role work has played in people’s lives while other activities have been restricted.

“Some things have been really eye-opening, though, such as people having access to very basic things for the first time since COVID, like team meetings,” she added.

Taking action is not a choice, but a necessity

According to the report, workplace commitment to improving workers’ mental health and wellbeing through tangible action has been particularly important this year, and more people reported their workplace took action compared with 2019.

The best industry for taking action was information media and telecommunications, and the worst ranked was transport, postal and warehousing.

Also, while ‘lack of time and commitment’ has tumbled as the most commonly perceived barrier preventing employers from investing in workplace mental health and wellbeing, ‘businesses facing more important issues / struggling to survive’ has emerged as the new biggest hurdle, especially for small businesses.

One in three workplaces (29.8%) have implemented new initiatives to support workers’ mental health and wellbeing since March, such as paid mental health days off, sick pay for casual workers, meeting-free blocks and substantially longer break times.

However, more than half (55.1%) of workplaces are still not taking any tangible action, despite a stronger national focus and additional funding. These workplaces are missing out on huge benefits to their workforce and their business more broadly.

“Lost productivity due to mental ill-health is estimated to cost the Australian economy between $10-18^[2] billion every year, but on the flip side, every dollar invested into workplace mental health is estimated to deliver a return on investment of 5:1^[3].

“In light of this, taking action by investing in workplace mental health and wellbeing is not an optional extra, it’s a must have. With Australia’s increasing awareness of workplace mental health and its links to productivity, combined with our radically transformed ways of working, I hope this marks a positive tide of change,” concluded Ms Lydon.

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[1] An index score of 100 represents the desired state of mental health and wellbeing in the workplace
[2] Productivity Commission into Mental Health estimate using HILDA data, published October 2019, https://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/completed/mental-health/draft#footnotes
[3] Mental health and employers; Refreshing the case for investment, January 2020 Deloitte UK, https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/uk/Documents/consultancy/deloitte-uk-mental-health-and-employers.pdf

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Margo Lydon

NSW based Local Government Super (LGS) has announced its partnership with national workplace mental health organisation SuperFriend, effective 1 October.

LGS was first established in 1997 to serve the superannuation and retirement needs of those working in NSW Local Government occupations. However, it is now open to any working Australian and manages approximately $12 billion for its members.

SuperFriend will support LGS’ employers and members in partnership with LGS’ group insurer TAL, with a range of online and facilitated training solutions, consulting, webinars and other resources. The aim of this partnership is to ensure a healthy and safe work environment and to reduce work-related mental health risks for LGS and their employers, and help their members reach a mentally and financially healthy retirement.

Speaking of the partnership, LGS CEO, Phil Stockwell, said “Over the last six months, COVID has highlighted the need for all of us to look after our own mental health as well as the mental health of our family and our colleagues. We can all experience stress, anxiety, or even depression at some point in our lives, but with the right support you can come out the other side stronger and more resilient.

“A good life, a fulfilling career and a productive workplace are all built on good mental health. That’s why we’ve partnered with SuperFriend to provide support, tools and other initiatives for our staff, our members, and their employers” added Mr Stockwell.

SuperFriend CEO, Margo Lydon said, “Our 2019 Indicators of a Thriving Workplace national research revealed that, despite assumptions around security and low stress in government occupations, public administration and safety was one of the top three industries where workers felt their workplace has caused a mental health condition. Our 2020 research will be released on 9 October so expect some insights into how COVID-19 has further impacted this sector.

“It’s really impressive to see LGS committing to improving mental health outcomes for its members at this particular time and we are thrilled to have the opportunity to work with them and their employers.”

TAL Chief Commercial Officer, Group Life & Investments, Andrew Howard, said, “Now, more than ever, it is essential that Australians have access to education and support for mental health. At TAL, we have worked closely with SuperFriend to successfully embed compulsory mental health training for our people leaders and further training to support the mental wellbeing of our employees and customers.  We are delighted to support LGS’ partnership with SuperFriend to improve the mental wellbeing of LGS and its members.”

LGS joins 24 other profit-to-member funds and eight group insurers in partnering with SuperFriend, an organisation created by the sector to reduce the impact and incidence of suicide and improve workplace mental health.

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Damian Hill

One of Australia’s largest super trustees, Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation (CSC), has announced its partnership with workplace mental health organisation SuperFriend, effective 12 August.

CSC is trustee for 11 super funds, collectively managing around $50 billion in funds under management for 730,000 Government and Australian Defence Force employees.

SuperFriend will support employers and customers of CSC’s super funds, in a partnership with CSC’s group insurer AIA Australia.

Speaking of the partnership, CSC’s CEO Damian Hill said “our vision is to build, support and protect better retirement outcomes for our customers and their families. An important part of that is investing in mentally healthy workplaces so that our customers’ wellbeing is supported throughout their working lives. As well as being financially secure, we want our customers to retire healthy and happy.”

Mr Hill added, “SuperFriend’s training and resources help reduce the stigma associated with mental health, equipping people with important skills to thrive at work. Our partnership also supports their nation-wide research into factors that improve and protect worker mental health, and advocacy for inclusive and fair treatment for people with mental health challenges.”

SuperFriend CEO Margo Lydon said, “Our 2019 Indicators of a Thriving Workplace research revealed that public administration workers experience higher levels of stress, work-related insomnia, bullying and mental health-related stigma compared to workers in other industries. We’re absolutely thrilled that CSC has committed to improving outcomes for these workers and their families.”

CEO and Managing Director of AIA Australia and New Zealand, Damien Mu stated, “AIA Australia is pleased to be making a difference in people’s lives by supporting CSC customers when they need it most, while also seeking continuous improvement in customer experience. We’re a long-term partner of both CSC and SuperFriend, and we all have a big part to play in equipping people with the tools and skills they need to be well and stay well, in addition to supporting them through illness and recovery.”

CSC joins 23 other profit-to-member funds and eight group insurers in partnering with SuperFriend, an organisation created by the sector to reduce the impact and incidence of suicide and improve workplace mental health.

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Pippa Rose

SuperFriend, the national workplace mental health and wellbeing organisation, has seen increased demand for mental health and wellbeing training from Australian workplaces for their employees amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since social distancing measures were enforced in March, SuperFriend has seen a marked increase in demand for its support, delivering more than 80 mental health and wellbeing training and information sessions throughout the period.

The top industries seeking support for their employees during this challenging time include government, energy, and financial services — with over 80% of sessions delivered for the financial services sector alone.

Recognising the toll the last three months has taken on the media industry, SuperFriend hosted an exclusive training session for journalists on self-care and safe reporting on mental health, partnering with Mindframe, who advocate for safe reporting on suicide and mental ill-health.

“The pandemic is testing the mental health of Australian workers through ongoing challenges; changes to their work, whether through reduced hours or being laid off, working remotely or behind protective equipment, and job insecurity or financial stress” says Margo Lydon, Chief Executive Officer of SuperFriend.

“In a short space of time, there has been an increase in anxiety around physical safety and fear for loved ones, along with a decrease in financial and job security. On top of this, forced isolation means withdrawing from our usual social networks, exacerbating loneliness and often worsening existing mental health issues.

“It’s fairly common at the moment to have days when we aren’t feeling our best, as there are lots of things outside of our control at the moment. It’s more important now than ever to talk about mental health, especially around the challenges we’re all experiencing,” added Ms Lydon.

The Productivity Commission estimates that one in five Australians experience a mental health condition in any year and over their lifetime, with mental health costing Australian workplaces $17 billion every year.^[1]
Ms Lydon notes, “Increasing understanding and literacy around signs of poor mental health, as well as strategies for improving mental health can help people to access support, ultimately minimising harm and building thriving workplaces. When people are well supported, it leads to increased productivity and profitability.”

Five ways to wellbeing

As part of its training, SuperFriend encourages Australian workers to implement five ‘try at home’ ways to strengthen their psychological health and reduce stress.

This ‘Five Ways to Wellbeing’ includes: Connect, Keep Learning, Take Notice, Be Active and Give. 

Pippa Rose, Head of Consulting at SuperFriend said: “It’s a good model to think about the things that you can engage in to support your wellbeing. These are things we can do at no cost, and are all evidence-based in supporting and improving wellbeing.

“Things like making time to connect with friends and family, learning and keeping our brains curious whether through an online course or learning a new language, staying active even if for a few minutes a day, and being aware of what’s happening around you. Reflecting daily on things you’re grateful for also goes a long way towards improving wellbeing.

Ms Rose believes mental health is complex and impacted by many factors that are inherently more difficult to identify and manage than those affecting physical health.

“However there are practical and effective actions that can help people to support their mental health and wellbeing. Simple steps, such as integrating the Five Ways to Wellbeing into your daily routine, can not only encourage healthy thinking but give you a sense of control, boost productivity and reduce stress in these uncertain times” she concluded.

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