Why mental health is part of our safety culture

A strong safety culture depends on people noticing when something is not right and feeling able to say so. At Beckers, that principle applies to wellbeing as much as to equipment and processes. 

Our Health and Safety Policy includes physical and mental wellbeing among its Seven Commitments. A safe workplace is one where people feel supported, respected and able to speak up. 

A global foundation, delivered locally 

Mental wellbeing is supported through an annual global target: In 2026, every country should complete an education and awareness workshop, and a further intervention such as assessment or counselling. 

Training reaches colleagues through local trainers, in local languages. Mental Health Awareness workshops have run since 2022. Mental Health Conversations for Managers, developed jointly by Global HR and EHS, followed in 2023 and 2024. Personal Resilience training was delivered in six countries in 2025. 

Delivering through local trainers is deliberate. A conversation about mental health lands differently when it comes from someone who knows the site, in the language colleagues use every day. 

Support that fits the place 

Four countries – the USA, the UAE, Poland and South Africa – offer a full Employee Assistance Program, covering assessment, counselling, workshops and online resources. Others have built their own combinations: in Sweden, external counselling alongside a wellness allowance and rooms for exercise and quiet reflection; in France, a Quality of Life at Work Week with confidential individual support and a digital disconnection code. In the UAE, when colleagues spoke about the strain of rising regional tensions, the crisis team made confidential multilingual support available to employees and their families. 

Managers can make a real difference 

Since a 2023 pilot in the UK and Malaysia, and now extending to Germany, managers have trained as Mental Health First Aiders: recognizing when someone may be struggling, starting that conversation, and helping them find support. 

The reasoning mirrors our approach to safety. How managers respond when people raise concerns shapes whether they raise them at all. 

An ongoing commitment 

The aim is to connect what sites have learned, make support more consistent, and keep the flexibility that makes it relevant locally. This is a long-term commitment rather than a campaign, and it continues.