COMMERCIAL property group Charter Hall announced that it has joined Healthy Heads in Trucks & Sheds (HHTS) as an Open Road sponsor.
HHTS, a mental health and wellbeing organisation that operates specifically in the road transport, warehousing and logistics industries, is dedicated to improving and spreading awareness about the importance of psychologically safe work environments.
The organisation focuses on ensuring that these industries prioritise both the mental health and physical wellbeing of their employees, a mission that aligns well with Charter Hall’s commitment to supporting the wellbeing of its employees and customers through healthier and more sustainable buildings and a number of initiatives designed to build better outcomes for communities.
Through this sponsorship, Charter Hall’s industrial and logistics sector is proud to be partnering with key tenant customers to generate support for the initiative and increase awareness of the importance of mental health in the workplace.
A number of Charter Hall’s biggest tenant customers including Coles, Woolworths, Toll, and Australia Post are all among HHTS’ founding partners and have a strong track record in prioritising mental health and physical wellbeing in the road transport, warehousing and logistics industries.
In a recent report released by SuperFriend, it was revealed that 44.8% of workers experience a mental health condition, with 38.2% of those workers saying that their workplace caused the condition or made it worse.
HHTS also revealed that truck drivers are less likely to access mental health services, and that drivers with depression are seven times more likely to have been in a crash.
Charter Hall industrial and logistics CEO, Richard Stacker, said, “At Charter Hall, we are committed to creating a healthy environment where people are able to thrive and achieve their aspirations.
“We know that in our industry suicide is the third most common cause of death after heart failure and heart disease, and this means mental health should be a top priority for everyone in our space.
“The important work being done by HHTS goes to the heart of the change we hope to see in the sector. We look forward to working closely with HHTS and ensuring that businesses and employees across the industrial and logistics sector are equipped with the tools to prioritise wellbeing and drive positive change.”
HHTS chief executive Naomi Frauenfelder said, “We would like to extend a very warm welcome to Charter Hall in joining the HHTS community”.
She said for too long, employees in the road transport, warehousing and logistics industries have struggled with mental health and physical wellbeing, due to a number of industry risk factors.
“Our hope is that by the sector taking a more proactive approach through HHTS and our recently launched National Mental Health & Wellbeing Roadmap, we will go a long way in improving the lives of workers.
“We are very pleased to work with a company like Charter Hall, which has a demonstrated commitment to improving the health and wellbeing of its employees and customers across sector, and working together to further build awareness of this incredibly important cause,” Ms Frauenfelder said.
