Well-Being at Work Policy

1. General Statement

ILF Scotland value the health and well-being of our employees. We are a responsible employer and are aware of our duty of care regarding the mental health and welfare of our staff. For this reason, we will take all reasonable steps to ensure that staff are not placed under excessive stress by their work.

2. Legal Position

The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 requires us to take reasonable steps to look after our employees’ mental health and welfare. This means that we need to ensure that staff do not have excessive demands placed on them by their job. As stress is also caused by bullying, harassment and violence, we are required by law to provide a working environment which is, as is reasonably practicable, free from these influences. However, we are legally entitled to assume that all staff can cope with the normal day-to-day pressures of their job. If this is not the case, staff have a duty to inform us.

3. Definition of Stress

The Health & Safety Executive has defined stress as follows: “The reaction people have to excessive pressures or other types of demands placed on them. It arises when they worry that they cannot cope.” In other words, stress occurs when the pressures on a person exceed their ability to deal with them.

4. Procedures

Should any member of staff feel that they are suffering from an unacceptable level of work-related stress, the following procedures should be implemented:

• At first instance, the employee should inform their line manager. He or she will treat the matter with sympathy and in confidence.
• If necessary, we will carry out a stress risk assessment. This will include a review of the employee’s actual duties against those described in their job description.
• The findings of the risk assessment will be discussed with the employee. If appropriate, changes will be made to the way they work and/or their role in order to reduce the levels of stress experienced.
• If appropriate, the employee will be referred to Occupational Health or a doctor of the company’s choice for a medical assessment. Alternatively, the employee may be offered counselling.

5. Non-Work Problems

Whilst we are not responsible for causes of stress outside the working environment, we recognise that it can impact on an employee’s attendance and work performance. Therefore, we would encourage employees to make us aware of any problems which are causing them concern or via the Employee Assistance Programme, outlined in our Staff Handbook.

6. Records

We will process your data in relation to this policy for legitimate business purposes. We will also retain records of any correspondence, reports, meetings and associated documentation in relation to this policy. Such records will be retained in accordance with our Retention Schedule.

Any information related to your health or other personal data will be treated with utmost confidence, in accordance with our obligations under applicable data protection legislation and our Data Protection Policy. However, we may need to share your data with third parties, such as medical professionals, where appropriate.