In conversation with Lawyers Weekly, Clayton Utz national mental health manager Emma Howard said that the firm learnt a lot from the pandemic.

“Mental health had been a profession-wide focus for some time prior to the pandemic — the impacts of which brought the critical and ongoing need for mental health support even more to the fore. As a firm, we were certainly acutely aware of the impacts on our own people and their extended families,” she said.

“We made sure we were encouraging people to check in and stay connected with their teams, and we offered people access to a host of tools and resources, as well as holding sessions specific to helping people to manage their natural emotions and responses to the challenges of living through a pandemic and all that entailed. One of the positive outcomes of the last couple of years has been the increase in the number of people actively seeking support. The more we continue to talk about and normalise mental health concerns, the likelier we are as a profession to see improved outcomes.”

In May, Clayton Utz officially launched its new health and wellbeing program, Embrace, which brought together all of its programs.

“Embrace reflects a more personalised, tailored approach to supporting our people’s health and wellbeing. We’re encouraging people to be proactive about their own health and in seeking support, recognising that everyone has different needs and concerns depending on their individual circumstances. Embrace brings together a range of resources in one dedicated hub on our intranet, covering: mental health, physical health and nutrition, family and carer’s support, sleep, and injury and illness,” Ms Howard said.

“As well as these resources, we regularly run educational and information sessions; for example, last week, we hosted a panel discussion on the role a person’s cultural background plays in mental health. That panel was facilitated by one of our partners, and featured a senior associate who is also trained as a mental health first aider, as well as mental health experts. We’ll be hosting a virtual webinar facilitated by a clinical psychologist to help raise awareness of mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, and a workshop on the science of positive psychology.”

The firm’s Embrace “hub” has a section dedicated to mental health where staff can access information, resources and support. Clayton Utz has also trained over 175 partners and other employees to be mental health first-aiders, as well as launched a mental health series comprising various panel discussions.

VIEW ALL

“In our most recent employee engagement survey, a large proportion of our people strongly agreed with the statement: ‘My colleagues look out for each other’s health, safety and wellbeing’,” Ms Howard added.

“While there’s always more we can do, we see these types of responses as a good sign that our focus on mental health support is helping people in a tangible way.”

In addition, the firm is continuing to focus on mental health within the profession — and Ms Howard said other BigLaw firms should do the same.

“The profession for some time has recognised that we need to keep talking about mental health and prioritise support in this area. There’s no single solution. As an employer, we’re making an effort to listen to our people and what they’re telling us about their needs, and then responding with tangible support,” she said.

“Mental health is important in any profession and setting. That’s why Clayton Utz became a founding member of the Corporate Mental Health Alliance Australia (CMHAA) in 2020. Employers of all types across all industries have a role to play in helping their employees maintain good mental health and seek support when they need it.”