Mental health issues and concerns are a rising factor when people in the automotive sector turn to industry charity BEN, according to its annual report.
While low income and financial problems accounting for almost half of the challenges faced by workers the charity has seen a 78% rise in mental issues.
It helped over 3,000 people in the last financial year and that is a 14% increase.
“This is a significant statistic for the industry to be aware of and shows there are some very serious challenges being faced by people, impacting directly on businesses and, therefore, the automotive sector as a whole,” the charity said in a statement.
“This big surge in enquiries to Ben about mental health has also perhaps been driven by increased awareness about these issues in the news and by our own awareness campaign, Hats on 4 mental health, which launched last year.”
Ben’s mental health campaign including Hats on 4 mental health day is running again this year from October to December and as part of the campaign and to directly address these findings, Ben will launch a new programme of mental health training for the automotive industry.
Zara Ross, Ben’s Chief Executive, said, “We’re proud to publish our annual Impact Report for 2016-17 which offers clear information to the industry about the biggest issues that people working in our sector are facing.
“It provides insightful, powerful data which informs the industry about the most serious concerns for the workforce and thus the industry as a whole.
“The report also shows the real positive differences Ben has made to peoples’ lives. We have seen growth in two key areas across the business – the number of people we have supported and our fundraising income.
“We are very grateful to all of our supporters who have helped raise awareness and funds to enable us to continue to support the automotive industry and its people. Ben is an integral part of the UK automotive industry, supporting and equipping people with the tools they need to stay healthy for work and for life, as well as enabling businesses to help their most important asset – their people.”