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28 Jul 2020
by Debbie Fennel

Debbie Fennell from DHL Supply Chain on responding to COVID-19 by increasing its wellbeing provision

DHL Supply Chain employs around 40,000 people in the UK, the majority of whom are working on the frontline delivering essentials such as medical supplies and fuel. During the pandemic, a sizeable proportion are working from home, some have been temporarily redeployed to other roles within the business and others are furloughed.

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The impact of COVID-19 will be a key discussion topic for the employer panel on Wednesday 23rd September at the virtual Employee Wellbeing Congress. Join Dame Carol Black; Paul Farmer, chief executive at Mind; Vish Buldawoo, VP – global benefits and wellbeing at Centrica; and Nicola Wells, global director reward at Unilever as they discuss the legacy of COVID-19.

The pandemic presents different challenges for our colleagues depending on their personal circumstances, and all of these can impact mental health.

These challenges include dealing with isolation and not being able to see family or friends; balancing home and work, for example, managing issues such as home schooling; fear and anxiety around COVID-19 itself and the risk of becoming infected or passing it on; financial worries; and dealing with bereavement.

Long before the outbreak hit the UK, we were already working on a wellbeing programme as one of our 2020 priorities – but with the virus’ rapid escalation we swiftly moved from the planning phase into delivery. Ultimately, we will need to review and consider the long-term impact on mental health and what the ‘new normal’ is. However, we have already identified four key wellbeing priorities.

These are:

  1. Communicating about existing wellbeing resources and support. These include our employee assistance programme, private medical insurance with Doctor@ Hand service (an online GP service), discounted will writing, and more.
  2. Implementing and communicating two new, highly relevant wellbeing benefits: a 24/7 GP service for all employees and a mental health app.
  3. Offering financial wellbeing support. We provide information about internal benefits and support but also point employees to helpful external links.
  4. Supporting our internal communications team in providing regular and honest two-way communication for our colleagues. At this time, employees need empathy, kindness and positivity from their leaders – all our communication and support aims to reflect this. Working together with our internal communications team, we have been issuing a fortnightly briefing pack containing holistic wellbeing information and articles on health issues such as sleeping, exercise and how to maintain physical, emotional, financial and social wellbeing.

Our benefits platform has also become even more of a hub for wellbeing support and trusted resources and is easily accessible from work or home.

Our parent company DPDHL’s purpose is ‘Connecting People, Improving Lives’ and we have really seen this come to life in recent weeks. For example, our internal communication app, where colleagues can share heart-warming stories, has become a great channel for recognising individuals and teams that have gone the extra mile to help each other, the community and the nation. The app also allows us to post regular updates from the management team.

What about the future? What will be the long-term impact on colleagues’ mental health, or our ways of working? We certainly don’t have all the answers yet but we are already thinking about all these issues.

Our regular drumbeat approach to communication will undoubtedly play a key role in supporting our employees’ wellbeing.

The author is Debbie Fennell senior benefits manager DHL Supply Chain.

This article is featured in REBA’s Employee Wellbeing research 2020, in partnership with AXA PPP healthcare.