1 00:00:07,133 --> 00:00:10,453 Speaker 1: You're listening to the Saturday Morning with Jack team podcast 2 00:00:10,573 --> 00:00:13,253 Speaker 1: from News Talks at Google. 3 00:00:13,293 --> 00:00:16,253 Speaker 2: Sutherland from Umbrella Wellbeing is here with us this morning, Kilder, 4 00:00:16,293 --> 00:00:17,733 Speaker 2: Google Cider Jack. 5 00:00:17,813 --> 00:00:19,253 Speaker 3: Nice to have you in the Capitol with us for 6 00:00:19,293 --> 00:00:19,573 Speaker 3: the week. 7 00:00:19,693 --> 00:00:22,653 Speaker 2: Yes, it's so good to be here. Delighted to be here. 8 00:00:22,693 --> 00:00:25,053 Speaker 3: I mean we've sort of turned the weather on about 9 00:00:25,093 --> 00:00:27,733 Speaker 3: as well as Wellington ever tunes the weather on for anybody. 10 00:00:27,933 --> 00:00:31,573 Speaker 2: Yes, fourteen degrees or something, as. 11 00:00:32,013 --> 00:00:35,893 Speaker 3: It's not blowing a tornado exactly. So there you go, 12 00:00:35,933 --> 00:00:37,373 Speaker 3: You've got you have a good weekend. 13 00:00:37,733 --> 00:00:39,413 Speaker 2: I know that, I know that Wellington's had a bit 14 00:00:39,453 --> 00:00:41,373 Speaker 2: of a rough time of late, but I have always 15 00:00:41,493 --> 00:00:43,573 Speaker 2: had a real soft swall for Wellington. I like cities 16 00:00:43,573 --> 00:00:46,733 Speaker 2: with character, and I feel like Wellington is a city 17 00:00:46,773 --> 00:00:50,013 Speaker 2: with character. Now it is easier sometimes to love to 18 00:00:50,053 --> 00:00:52,813 Speaker 2: love Wellington's character when you're yeah, there for you know, 19 00:00:52,893 --> 00:00:55,853 Speaker 2: five hours at a time and not battling the suddenly 20 00:00:55,933 --> 00:00:58,653 Speaker 2: day after day. But no, no, it's very nice to 21 00:00:58,693 --> 00:01:02,693 Speaker 2: be here. Hey, Umbrella has just released its in your report. Right, 22 00:01:02,893 --> 00:01:05,613 Speaker 2: you do this huge study every year into the state 23 00:01:05,613 --> 00:01:07,693 Speaker 2: of health and well being and workplaces, so just give 24 00:01:07,773 --> 00:01:08,533 Speaker 2: us a bit of background. 25 00:01:09,213 --> 00:01:12,173 Speaker 3: Yeah, so this is about the third or fourth time 26 00:01:12,213 --> 00:01:14,773 Speaker 3: I think we've done an annual report and that we 27 00:01:15,653 --> 00:01:17,453 Speaker 3: organizations come to us and say, hey, look, we really 28 00:01:17,493 --> 00:01:19,453 Speaker 3: want to look at the health and well being of 29 00:01:19,453 --> 00:01:21,373 Speaker 3: our people, and we run a big survey with them. 30 00:01:21,413 --> 00:01:23,653 Speaker 3: So we've over the past couple of years have surveyed 31 00:01:23,893 --> 00:01:25,933 Speaker 3: eleven thousand people, which is quite a lot when you 32 00:01:26,013 --> 00:01:29,693 Speaker 3: think about it, across more than thirty different organizations and 33 00:01:29,813 --> 00:01:33,293 Speaker 3: just really getting a gauge on you know, their staff 34 00:01:33,333 --> 00:01:36,213 Speaker 3: and how they're feeling, and how the organization is feeling. 35 00:01:36,253 --> 00:01:38,733 Speaker 3: And then we try to pick out something that we 36 00:01:38,773 --> 00:01:42,013 Speaker 3: think will be of interest or relevance to just everyday 37 00:01:42,053 --> 00:01:45,093 Speaker 3: people and you know, and use that as as something 38 00:01:45,133 --> 00:01:47,893 Speaker 3: to talk about really about because we're keen on keeping 39 00:01:47,973 --> 00:01:50,533 Speaker 3: people happy and well in their workplace. That's our whole 40 00:01:50,653 --> 00:01:53,533 Speaker 3: it's our whole deal, really, and we know that the happier, 41 00:01:53,573 --> 00:01:56,173 Speaker 3: the weller I don't think that's the word. The weller 42 00:01:56,253 --> 00:01:58,573 Speaker 3: that people are in the workplace, the better they work, 43 00:01:58,693 --> 00:02:02,453 Speaker 3: and you know, it's good for everybody. So yeah, so 44 00:02:02,493 --> 00:02:04,853 Speaker 3: this year we were looking at that. Often we hear 45 00:02:04,893 --> 00:02:07,973 Speaker 3: people say, oh, we're just looking at the physical health 46 00:02:08,013 --> 00:02:10,733 Speaker 3: and safety risks at work, you know, slips, trips and falls, 47 00:02:10,733 --> 00:02:13,613 Speaker 3: and we won't look at the mental health stuff just yet. 48 00:02:13,693 --> 00:02:15,733 Speaker 3: And I guess what we wanted to point out this 49 00:02:15,813 --> 00:02:18,573 Speaker 3: time is, hey, these two are these two are intermingled. 50 00:02:18,573 --> 00:02:21,733 Speaker 3: That you know, what you do physically affects what you 51 00:02:21,733 --> 00:02:24,693 Speaker 3: how you experienced mentally, and what you what your mental 52 00:02:24,733 --> 00:02:28,893 Speaker 3: health influences your behavior, and the two aren't separate. And 53 00:02:28,933 --> 00:02:31,053 Speaker 3: so we we thought we'd pick out some you know, 54 00:02:31,133 --> 00:02:33,293 Speaker 3: some key points from that just to sort of get 55 00:02:33,293 --> 00:02:35,733 Speaker 3: a conversation going as much as yeah, let's do that there. 56 00:02:35,773 --> 00:02:38,053 Speaker 2: So so run us through some of the key findings 57 00:02:38,053 --> 00:02:38,693 Speaker 2: from the survey. 58 00:02:39,613 --> 00:02:42,813 Speaker 3: Yeah, So, what we found that more than half the 59 00:02:42,853 --> 00:02:46,653 Speaker 3: workplaces that we surveyed were said they were looking they 60 00:02:46,693 --> 00:02:50,893 Speaker 3: were struggling to manage their staff well being and health. 61 00:02:50,973 --> 00:02:52,933 Speaker 3: So they they knew that it was an issue, but 62 00:02:52,973 --> 00:02:54,893 Speaker 3: they didn't they didn't really know what to do. And 63 00:02:54,933 --> 00:02:58,093 Speaker 3: they kind of understood that having happy, healthy people at 64 00:02:58,133 --> 00:03:01,493 Speaker 3: work was good for good for business, good for productivity, 65 00:03:01,533 --> 00:03:03,773 Speaker 3: good for people, so but they were still kind of 66 00:03:03,773 --> 00:03:06,213 Speaker 3: not sure what to do. And we found that when 67 00:03:06,213 --> 00:03:09,053 Speaker 3: we sort of drilled down about a quarter of people 68 00:03:09,093 --> 00:03:13,453 Speaker 3: that we surveyed were experiencing high all very high levels 69 00:03:13,453 --> 00:03:17,013 Speaker 3: of distress, and those are things like anxiety and depression. 70 00:03:17,973 --> 00:03:20,333 Speaker 3: And because of our clever people in the background, we 71 00:03:20,373 --> 00:03:22,373 Speaker 3: could drill down even further and look at what of this, 72 00:03:22,533 --> 00:03:25,893 Speaker 3: What were some of the things contributing to those And 73 00:03:26,333 --> 00:03:28,853 Speaker 3: they were a mixture of like personal what you might 74 00:03:28,853 --> 00:03:32,293 Speaker 3: call personal factors and work factors. So a lot of 75 00:03:32,333 --> 00:03:36,493 Speaker 3: people are not getting enough sleep, a lot of people 76 00:03:36,573 --> 00:03:39,173 Speaker 3: are not getting enough downtime, and are not able to 77 00:03:39,213 --> 00:03:44,253 Speaker 3: eat as or to sustain a really balanced diet. And 78 00:03:44,333 --> 00:03:48,373 Speaker 3: those things are really attribute contributing to their to their 79 00:03:48,413 --> 00:03:50,453 Speaker 3: to their well being and their mental health. And that's 80 00:03:50,653 --> 00:03:53,693 Speaker 3: you know, and those are things primarily in somebody, an 81 00:03:53,693 --> 00:03:56,733 Speaker 3: individual's control. But there were also things in the workplace, 82 00:03:56,933 --> 00:04:00,573 Speaker 3: like bullying, harassment in the in the workplace, or having 83 00:04:00,613 --> 00:04:04,293 Speaker 3: a high workload were also big contributors. So it shows 84 00:04:04,333 --> 00:04:06,373 Speaker 3: that there's sort of a you know, none of us 85 00:04:06,533 --> 00:04:10,093 Speaker 3: bring to take off our home heads and park them 86 00:04:10,093 --> 00:04:13,373 Speaker 3: at the door when we're going to work, and you know, 87 00:04:13,453 --> 00:04:16,213 Speaker 3: we bring stuff from work with us. Sorry, we bring 88 00:04:16,213 --> 00:04:19,333 Speaker 3: stuff from home with us to work, and vice versa. 89 00:04:19,373 --> 00:04:21,773 Speaker 3: We bring stuff from work home with us as well. 90 00:04:22,533 --> 00:04:23,973 Speaker 3: And so we're trying to break down this sort of 91 00:04:24,053 --> 00:04:28,853 Speaker 3: artificial distinction between home and work and between mental and 92 00:04:28,893 --> 00:04:31,973 Speaker 3: physical health and just looking at people as whole people. 93 00:04:32,053 --> 00:04:35,133 Speaker 2: Really, so, what can an employer do for something like 94 00:04:35,173 --> 00:04:39,533 Speaker 2: that where employees aren't getting enough sleep for example, or 95 00:04:39,653 --> 00:04:41,733 Speaker 2: you know, have a poor diet or something like that. 96 00:04:41,933 --> 00:04:44,493 Speaker 2: Are there really many leaders that employers can actually pull. 97 00:04:45,253 --> 00:04:48,933 Speaker 3: Yeah, look, I think that's a good question. There may 98 00:04:49,013 --> 00:04:51,133 Speaker 3: not be, but equally there may. And I think it's 99 00:04:51,173 --> 00:04:53,133 Speaker 3: an easy excuse to go, oh, there's nothing we can 100 00:04:53,173 --> 00:04:55,333 Speaker 3: do that's you know, that's about them. But you know, 101 00:04:55,453 --> 00:04:58,453 Speaker 3: if you have shift workers, for example, we know that 102 00:04:58,893 --> 00:05:02,133 Speaker 3: for example, night shifts are really, in the long term, 103 00:05:02,213 --> 00:05:05,413 Speaker 3: really bad for people's physical and mental health. It's a 104 00:05:05,453 --> 00:05:10,173 Speaker 3: real they can have a really big effect on people's 105 00:05:10,293 --> 00:05:13,573 Speaker 3: well being. And so you know, looking at what they're 106 00:05:13,573 --> 00:05:16,653 Speaker 3: doing around shift work, are people not sleeping because they're 107 00:05:16,653 --> 00:05:19,013 Speaker 3: so stressed out about work? You know, I think a 108 00:05:19,013 --> 00:05:20,933 Speaker 3: lot of people come home and they can't sleep at 109 00:05:21,013 --> 00:05:23,733 Speaker 3: night because they're tossing and turning about work. And it 110 00:05:23,853 --> 00:05:26,093 Speaker 3: will they have a job and you know, how's productivity 111 00:05:26,133 --> 00:05:28,373 Speaker 3: going and all that kind of thing, and so and 112 00:05:28,733 --> 00:05:33,373 Speaker 3: that's you know, somewhat at least in control of a workplace. Yea. 113 00:05:34,813 --> 00:05:38,613 Speaker 3: So and often you know, if you think about logging 114 00:05:38,693 --> 00:05:43,013 Speaker 3: companies or transport companies, sleep's obviously really crucial for those 115 00:05:43,213 --> 00:05:46,133 Speaker 3: for those organizations because you don't want you know, you 116 00:05:46,133 --> 00:05:48,613 Speaker 3: don't want your truck drivers falling asleep at the wheel, 117 00:05:49,773 --> 00:05:51,493 Speaker 3: and so that you know, I know a number of 118 00:05:51,533 --> 00:05:53,453 Speaker 3: transport companies are looking at things that they can do 119 00:05:53,533 --> 00:05:57,293 Speaker 3: to support their staff to actually understand and get us 120 00:05:57,293 --> 00:06:00,653 Speaker 3: some get into some good sleep habits and sleep patterns, 121 00:06:00,693 --> 00:06:04,213 Speaker 3: because that's that's great for safety, it's great for people's 122 00:06:04,213 --> 00:06:07,213 Speaker 3: well being. So I think it involves, you know, organizations 123 00:06:07,253 --> 00:06:09,493 Speaker 3: and businesses having a think about is what is what 124 00:06:09,533 --> 00:06:11,693 Speaker 3: can we do? Is there anything that we are contributing 125 00:06:11,773 --> 00:06:13,893 Speaker 3: to this that we can then help people with? 126 00:06:14,773 --> 00:06:17,973 Speaker 2: And do you find there's still a lot of resistance 127 00:06:18,093 --> 00:06:21,213 Speaker 2: from workplaces who say, well, you know, this is all 128 00:06:21,333 --> 00:06:25,213 Speaker 2: nice and good and maybe a little bit wooly in theory, 129 00:06:25,453 --> 00:06:29,693 Speaker 2: but actually yeah, and that they perhaps don't appreciate that 130 00:06:29,733 --> 00:06:32,933 Speaker 2: the better off their employees are, whether it's physical or 131 00:06:32,973 --> 00:06:36,133 Speaker 2: mental health, generally, the more productive are. 132 00:06:37,293 --> 00:06:39,053 Speaker 3: Yeah, I know what you mean. You know, people go 133 00:06:39,173 --> 00:06:41,213 Speaker 3: it's all about woo woo, isn't it. Oh, you know, 134 00:06:41,573 --> 00:06:43,693 Speaker 3: it's about as long as we've got hard hats on. 135 00:06:43,773 --> 00:06:47,013 Speaker 3: That's you know that we're all right. And I think 136 00:06:47,133 --> 00:06:50,093 Speaker 3: there's been a gradual change and we're sort of in 137 00:06:50,133 --> 00:06:53,493 Speaker 3: the middle of a real change in feeling around that. 138 00:06:54,053 --> 00:06:57,093 Speaker 3: And you know, so organizations, a lot of organizations and 139 00:06:57,173 --> 00:07:00,293 Speaker 3: industries are now realizing that it's a big problem for them. 140 00:07:00,373 --> 00:07:02,813 Speaker 3: We know, you know, Mates and construction do heaps of 141 00:07:02,813 --> 00:07:05,373 Speaker 3: really good work in the building area because they have 142 00:07:05,733 --> 00:07:10,813 Speaker 3: some pretty pretty, you know, pretty dramatic figures around mental 143 00:07:11,213 --> 00:07:15,093 Speaker 3: health problems in that workforce, and they're coming to realize that, hey, 144 00:07:15,133 --> 00:07:18,533 Speaker 3: that's actually, that's actually something we need to look at. 145 00:07:18,573 --> 00:07:22,773 Speaker 3: So I think there's a growing realization and and you know, 146 00:07:22,813 --> 00:07:25,133 Speaker 3: some organizations are really into it and some are just 147 00:07:25,333 --> 00:07:27,973 Speaker 3: new to the to the area, and that that's okay. 148 00:07:28,053 --> 00:07:30,813 Speaker 3: You know, it all starts with awareness and understanding. And 149 00:07:31,173 --> 00:07:32,973 Speaker 3: I guess that's what we were hoping to do, is 150 00:07:33,013 --> 00:07:35,293 Speaker 3: to say, hey, look, we just encourage you to think 151 00:07:35,333 --> 00:07:38,773 Speaker 3: about this stuff. If you're running a business, you know, 152 00:07:38,893 --> 00:07:41,173 Speaker 3: think about health and safety and well being in a 153 00:07:41,213 --> 00:07:43,733 Speaker 3: really broad sense. Don't just focus on the slips trips 154 00:07:43,733 --> 00:07:46,013 Speaker 3: and walls, and if you've got a first aid kit 155 00:07:46,093 --> 00:07:48,333 Speaker 3: and if you can prevent it, that's way better than 156 00:07:48,373 --> 00:07:51,093 Speaker 3: having to patch people up after they've been hurt. 157 00:07:52,653 --> 00:07:56,013 Speaker 2: Thank you so much, Google gat Chat as per and 158 00:07:56,413 --> 00:07:58,533 Speaker 2: well done on the survey. It's got a huge, I 159 00:07:58,613 --> 00:08:01,773 Speaker 2: mean the huge response. Eleven thousand people thirty three workplaces 160 00:08:01,773 --> 00:08:03,933 Speaker 2: over the last couple of years. That is very impressive. Indeed, 161 00:08:04,173 --> 00:08:07,213 Speaker 2: Google Sutherland is a clinical psychle just of course with 162 00:08:07,413 --> 00:08:08,333 Speaker 2: Umbrella Wellbeing. 163 00:08:09,013 --> 00:08:12,093 Speaker 1: For more from Saturday Morning with Jack Tame. Listen live 164 00:08:12,173 --> 00:08:15,013 Speaker 1: to News Talks ed B from nine am Saturday, or 165 00:08:15,093 --> 00:08:16,973 Speaker 1: follow the podcast on iHeartRadio