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Case Study: Tate & Lyle

Employee Health and Wellbeing Initiatives

Tate & Lyle recognises the positive impact of work on employee health and wellbeing, and monitors the effects of health and work on each other. In partnership with Neylon Occupational Health Ltd, it provides a programme of clinical and occupational services which reduce or prevent illness or injury and, in the case of absence, support the employee's prompt return to work through a rehabilitation programme.

Good health and wellbeing play an essential role in creating a world-class, motivated workforce, which is why the health and wellbeing of employees is a top priority at Tate & Lyle.

Employees benefit from all elements of the programme, which include:

• Rehabilitation back to work and musculoskeletal injury initiatives
• Health awareness campaigns and weight reduction programmes
• Employee assistance initiatives
• Smoking cessation classes
• Healthy food options
• Corporate discounts for local gyms
• On-site complementary therapies

Tate & Lyle has also adopted a number of new principles where early return to work in a well-managed workplace improves both mental and physical recovery and is a treatment for people recovering from sickness.

It has also developed communication programmes with employees and GPs to broaden understanding that a sick certificate does not preclude working in a different role tailored to individual ability. Also provided are discussion, counselling, focus groups and employee assistance programmes in order to support employees suffering from stress to remain at work.

Another key initiative is beyondblue, which is a pilot run by the Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health, where Tate & Lyle line managers are being trained to assist and appropriately manage employees with mental distress.

There have been some excellent results since the programme was implemented in 2002. There has been a 75% reduction in ill-health early retirement; 69% reduction in back injuries; 60% reduction in long-term sickness absence, and 50% reduction in physiotherapy provided.

Tate & Lyle has also won a number of awards, notably Gold in the FDF Community Partnership Awards 2008 in the Workplace Community Category, and the company was winner of the Vocational Rehabilitation Award 2007 from Occupational Health magazine.

Tate & Lyle's Health and Welbeing Initiatives won a gold Workplace Community award at the 2008 Community Partnership Awards and silver awards in 2007 and 2006

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More Information

FDF has published a booklet called Workplace Wellbeing: The Food Industry in Action - pdf | 1.2Mb, which features many of the schemes found in this section.

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