Mental Health Matters in May and Every Month
May is Mental Health Month and across West Fraser, we’ve reaffirmed our commitment that Mental Health Matters.
Mental health is as important as physical health – it impacts everything we do and is consistent with our values of safety and teamwork,” said Al Caputo, Vice President, Human Resources. “This month, we’ve seen teams across our operations reducing stigma around mental health by engaging in conversations and broadening awareness about the resources available to all employees. As part of this we’ve seen many divisions take action for mental health by participating in our walk challenge and divisional Go Green Days to further our supportive environment across West Fraser.”
"Take Action" Walking Challenges
Over 1,865 West Fraser employees participated in our inaugural walking challenge.
We were excited to launch this initiative, which benefits all of our pillars of health – physical, mental, social and financial. We’ve made apps available to help participants take steps. Over the month, we’ve seen many posts as participants have created community across the divisions as they challenged themselves to get steps in on the job and socially after hours.
Dr. Claire Robinson, West Fraser Medical Advisor
One of the walking challenges had employees, “Loggin the miles from the Scottish Highlands to the Belgian Woodlands.” The route connected our mills with other key points of interest along the way. Another route connected our offices and divisions across Canada. Congratulations to our Slave Lake and Sundre divisions, who finished virtually at the same time, with Slave Lake finishing 58 seconds ahead of Sundre.
Go Green Days
Organized by Health & Wellness Champion at each West Fraser location, our Go Green Days are a chance to wear green and show support for mental health and break down stigma.
Green is not only West Fraser’s colour, but also the international colour for mental health awareness. Our national non-profit organizations for mental health in Canada, the U.S. and the U.K. endorse going green for mental health to coincide with each country’s health promotion month or week.
Supporting our Communities
Each West Fraser employee has access to mental health supports and resources and we want to improve these supports within our communities. By partnering with the Canadian Mental Health Association, Mental Health America and Mikeysline, in Scotland, we are working to better understand the mental health needs of residents in rural communities. With more than 50 manufacturing facilities across our operations – many of them in rural areas – West Fraser is committed to being part of the solution.
In rural areas, residents are more likely to face limited access to services. To address this, in Canada and the U.S. we have partnered to make additional free online resources available, and, in a number of communities we are providing grants to help increase resources based on a community's needs. In Scotland, we’ve provided funding for Mikeysline to have a van bring services to people in the highlands.
