beyondblue is pleased to be working with the Council of Small Business Australia (COSBOA) and the founder of Billie Goat Soap, Leanne Faulkner, to create new resources to improve the mental health of small business owners and employees.
Faulkner was recently named the 2015 COSBOA Small Business Champion for her work highlighting the importance of mental health in small business owners.
beyondblue CEO Georgie Harman says Faulkner is well-respected for her work promoting mental health in small businesses and would make a valuable contribution to the work beyondblue is undertaking with COSBOA.
“I would like to congratulate Faulkner and look forward to seeing our association with her grow in the coming year,” says Harman.
Faulkner will act as an expert liaison between beyondblue and a reference group of COSBOA members, comprising of small business owners, microbusiness owners and sole operators, to provide beyondblue with hands-on experience and insights when preparing resources and campaigns targeting small businesses.
Heads Up, an Australian-first initiative of beyondblue and the Mentally Health Workplace Alliance, aims to highlight the benefits of mentally healthy workplaces and provide businesses and employees with free tools and resources to take action. The Heads Up website contains simple, practical information on how to create mentally healthy workplaces, support employees who may be experiencing a mental health condition and look after your own mental health.
“Research conducted last year by PwC revealed businesses can expect an average return on investment from appropriate mental health strategies of $2.30 for every dollar spent. However, the ROI can jump to as high as $15 for small businesses because benefits come from staff participation, which is easier to do in small businesses,” Harman explains.
"One of the focuses of Heads Up this financial year is developing resources for small business owners and employees who may be struggling with their mental health so that they are aware of where to turn to get help.
“We know small business owners and sole operators work very long hours, face financial pressure and often have little physical activity because of time pressures. They also sometimes need to work for a reduced salary to manage short term issues and operate in a highly competitive environment, often with little support. All these factors can impact their mental health.
“beyondblue looks forward to working with Leanne, COSBOA, and the reference group to deepen our understanding of the needs of small business owners and sole operators and provide useful tools and resources they can access to create mentally health workplaces.”
For more information about the Heads Up initiative, visit www.headsup.org.au.