Ensuring the welfare of employees living in Fiji’s fastest-growing city and coping with the evolving modern scape can be challenging.

Asco Motors Limited became the first company in Fiji to ensure that the mental health of its staff is taken care of after hosting a training with specialist organisation Lifeline Fiji.

Asco Motors chief financial officer Ronald Kumar said the training was centred around the idea that mental wellbeing could be impacted by many factors, including social relationships, physical health, level of productivity, and access to basic necessities.

“Far too often we do not acknowledge issues around mental wellbeing and its many impacts including loss of productivity at work,” Mr Kumar said.

“Our partnership with Lifeline Fiji will allow our valued employees to access professional assistance at their sole discretion. The access to such services is highly confidential between the employee and Lifeline Fiji.”

The company believes that by allowing access to employees to talk about their mental wellbeing with qualified professionals will only positively impact the employees personally and work life.

Lifeline Fiji’s Jeremaia Merekula said this was a great initiative.

“Mental health is very important. Most of the callers who call Lifeline Fiji are between the ages of 21 and 40,” he said.

“These people are in the labour force. And it is good to see that companies are looking after their employees.”

Mr Merekula said some more companies had signed on in the new year.

Edited by Percy Kean

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