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Daniel Strub, Head of Payroll and HR Services at Bell Switzerland, makes this clear from the very beginning: “The basis of all company health management (BGM) measures are the working conditions of a classic butcher shop like Bell.” The trained butcher has long been talking about the core business of the food company, which produces much more than just meat products. However, the internationally active group started as a butcher shop in 1869. It is still the best-known branch of Switzerland’s number one meat industry.
Meat connoisseurs’ craft is strict. “These are stressful jobs for young and old. You’re on your feet all day. Work starts early in the morning. It’s cold, it’s wet. It’s a classic physical activity,” says Strub. Butchers are used to it. But at Bell Switzerland, among about 2,800 employees at 14 locations, There are also many unskilled people for whom this is new.
“Friendly Workspace” label provides structure
Therefore, health promotion and prevention are particularly important. Bell Switzerland has been certified with the “Friendly Workplace” label since 2016. The BGM team consists of five people, including Noémie Windenberger, Head of Management in the Seafood business unit and Head of employee representation at Bell Switzerland.
“We had already done a lot before, but we didn’t conceptually summarize it under the term BGM,” Strub looks back. This was demonstrated during the initial certification. Bell Switzerland has now successfully completed the second re-evaluation. “Friendly Workplace” companies are re-evaluated every three years. “We imposed structures on ourselves through the label,” Strub says. There is a lot that can be done with BGM, “but it is important for us that the proposals are implemented and live.”
Relaxation thanks to the exoskeleton
«We work very closely with Swica. The insurance company is also a “Friendly Workplace” labeled company. We have holistic absence management in the background. “That’s why we are working on measures in an evaluation meeting,” says Strub. A common cause of absenteeism is skeletal problems due to physical activity. For this reason, great importance has been given to ergonomics for years.
Jobs are analyzed together with Swica professionals. Noémie Windenberger explains what we look at to see what can be improved: “On a normal day, employees at Seafood buy around 30 tonnes of fish. So we installed and programmed various machines there to ease the workload of the employees.” The measures now go even further, as Daniel Strub says: “Among other things, we use working exoskeletons in various locations.”
Until now these mechanical support structures were mostly used to help paralyzed people, but now they are often used for manual work. So how was this received by Bell employees? “Some think it helps,” says Noémie Windenberger. Others wouldn’t feel comfortable about it. Strub explains that it is normal that not all innovations are immediately welcomed by everyone. “It takes too much time, it doesn’t work” is a frequently expressed reaction.
Bring health management to employees
Therefore, communication plays an important role in corporate health management. Bell Switzerland relies on several channels here. On the one hand, offers are announced through announcements, in the employee newspaper and through flyers. On the other hand, everything related to WHM can be found on the intranet, where the Bell CEO addresses the workforce via a video message about health. An undergraduate thesis examining this shows that awareness of the WHM offering works. 70 percent of employees are aware of the offers. When it comes to usage, Strub admits that it depends on the offer.
A new application is being introduced so that BGM can reach personnel more directly. “We’re moving from a pick-up principle to a drop-off principle” so that employees don’t have to collect information, Strub says. The aim is to reach everyone on the internet. “We can communicate that way, and employees can download it once a week,” Windenberger says. Given the diversity of the workforce, which comes from approximately 70 countries, information is communicated in multiple languages.
Mental health in focus
Managers are important in taking all precautions and especially prevention. These also play an important role in early diagnosis and intervention. Regular training is provided to approximately 400 team leaders from production, administration and various management levels to ensure their suitability for this task.
“In addition to physical complaints, what increasingly worries us are mental illnesses,” says Strub. For this purpose, they launched the “Absence Management Training” program last year. «The special thing about this is that we are working with a theater and actors performing the scenes. Employees can get involved here, but they don’t have to. “We saw this at an event organized by Health Promotion Switzerland and now we have institutionalized it here.” This has been very positively received by employees, as evidenced by the numerous feedback.
“This is about how do I, as a manager, address this deficiency? This always sounds so simple: But today’s bosses also need to be business professionals and psychologists. “It’s incredibly difficult,” Strub explains.
Personal stress is increasing
When you’re far away, like an iceberg, you often only see the tip, which Strub compares to psychological stress. But in addition to pressure at work, employees may also be struggling with personal issues of a family or financial nature. Strub says these are increasing. “There is savings; There is nothing missing in the business world, it also adds a private side. “These are the reasons that are slipping away from our hands.”
When it comes to psychological problems in a craft company, those affected often ask themselves if they can discuss the problem with their superiors and resolve it. Mental illnesses have long been stigmatized. “But the mentality has already changed,” says Noémie Windenberger. Managers are responsive, “We are there and the tools are available. People just come to us,” says Strub.
The approximately 150 interns at Bell also bring a backpack full of stressors with them. The transition from school to work, from sitting to heavy physical work, can be difficult. We address these questions accordingly and engage students. Among other things, the working paper uses the Apprentice program of Health Promotion Switzerland, which provides 55 relevant tips. What Bell Switzerland does beyond this is exemplary: the consolidation year offers all apprenticeship graduates a job for at least one year.
Source : Blick
I am Dawid Malan, a news reporter for 24 Instant News. I specialize in celebrity and entertainment news, writing stories that capture the attention of readers from all walks of life. My work has been featured in some of the world’s leading publications and I am passionate about delivering quality content to my readers.
