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Mental health at work is a priority says Usdaw at the beginning of Mental Health Awareness Week

Date: 13 May 2019 Today marks the start of Mental Health Awareness Week organised by the Mental Health Foundation. Good mental health is a priority for Usdaw and the union is celebrating the role that workplace reps play in supporting members who are having problems at work for reasons relating to their mental health through the ‘It’s Good to Talk’ campaign.
Paddy Lillis – Usdaw General Secretary says: “Mental health has been a taboo subject for far too long. Usdaw’s ‘It’s Good to Talk’ campaign, run by our reps, has started to make a real difference to members in the workplace - making it possible for members to open up about the problems they are facing, to get the right support at work and where necessary, to be signposted to specialist services outside of the workplace.
 
“The majority of us will at some point in our lives experience a mental health problem. Anxiety and depression are common. Most of us are affected in some way, if not personally then through supporting a family member, a friend, or a work colleague. Talking about mental health, listening to someone, giving them the time to talk can make all the difference. It can literally be lifesaving.
 
“So I say to those reps who have run a workplace mental health campaign, to those who have supported a member with depression or anxiety, the work you are doing is of the utmost importance. We very much welcome Mental Health Awareness Week, it helps break down the stigma and supports the work that our reps do in workplaces. Mental health at work is a trade union issue and very much a priority for Usdaw.”
 
Notes for editors:
 
Usdaw (Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers) is the UK's fifth biggest and the fastest growing trade union with over 420,000 members. Membership has increased by more than one-third over the last couple of decades. Most Usdaw members work in the retail sector, but the union also has many members in transport, distribution, food manufacturing, chemicals and other trades.
 
For Usdaw press releases visit: http://www.usdaw.org.uk/news and you can follow us on Twitter @UsdawUnion

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