Member Article

Leading Yorkshire businessman speaks out on mental health

Leading Yorkshire businessman Gordon Black CBE has spoken out about the lack of understanding and compassion for those suffering from mental health issues at work.

Mr Black, who was chairman of the Keighley-based Peter Black Holdings between 1977 and 2007, believes that it is the duty of every employer to ensure that their staff are able to speak freely and openly about their mental health without prejudice.

Mr Black commented: “More than 85,000 people over the age of 18 in Leeds alone have a mental health disorder such as depression or anxiety. Many of those will be in employment and, I suspect, are afraid of talking about their condition.

“It is absolutely crucial that the stigma which surrounds mental health is removed. Depression is just as real as a broken arm or leg, so why is it treated differently?

As chairman of Peter Black, which at its height employed 3,000 people and had a turnover of £300 million, Mr Black aimed to make sure that his staff were looked after “as part of one big family”.

He commented: “This wasn’t an impossible dream. John Lewis and Marks and Spencer are but two high-profile companies in the UK today who have made a virtue of looking after their staff, developing a culture of teamwork and inclusivity.

“I remember my father telling me that he hated being employed at the start of his career; so much so that he vowed, if he ever became the boss, to create a happy and enlightened working environment. As the first chairman of the Yorkshire-based Peter Black Holdings, he was the master of the small gesture, which demonstrated that he had a genuine concern for the welfare of his employees.

“In today’s frantic, pressurised environment, when people change jobs with far more regularity than ever before, the physical and mental welfare of employees is often over-looked. How short-sighted this is. An unhappy or stressed staff member is likely to be operating at no more than 50 per cent of his or her capacity, which inevitably has negative repercussions on staff morale and company output.

“A wise employer will keep an eagle eye on the wellbeing of staff. A foolish employer will ignore it, thus exacerbating the problem. The debilitating impact of high staff turnover must not be under-estimated,” said Mr Black.

In his new book From Bags to Blenders, Mr Black talks about his role as a long-standing trustee of the mental health charity the Charlie Waller Memorial Trust, saying: “It is enlightened self-interest to be able to recognise the early symptoms of stress and depression in the workplace.

“A joint initiative between Vitality Health and the Daily Telegraph reported that over 80 per cent of employees suffered from work-related stress. According to the Centre for Mental Health, stress costs UK employers £26 billion per year. That is why every organisation, regardless of size or sector, needs to take mental health seriously.”

• Gordon Black’s brand-new autobiographical book From Bags To Blenders is published by Icon Books (£12.99) and is a no-nonsense success guide from one of the UK’s top business leaders.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Robert Beaumont .