Sanofi First Biopharmaceutical Company To Receive National Award Recognising Employee Health And Wellbeing Commitments

Sanofi has been accredited by the nationally recognised Workplace Wellbeing Charter for its commitment to improving the health and wellbeing of its nearly 1,000 UK-based workforce. The Workplace Wellbeing Charter, overseen by Health@Work, measures how organisations ensure the health and wellbeing of employees. The charter recognises that a proactive approach to the health and wellbeing is essential, not only to the employees but also for productive workplaces. Health@Work assessed Sanofi against a set of eight pillars: absence management, health and safety, mental health provision, smoking, physical activity standards, healthy eating, and alcohol.

“We are delighted to be recognised by the Charter in this way and believe the accreditation reflects our ongoing efforts to support the health and wellbeing of our employees, as well as the wider community through our work in the area of prevention,” comments Gordon Tillett, HR Director, Sanofi UK and Ireland. “The Workplace Wellbeing Charter has provided us with a vital framework and tangible goals that we can continue to work on as we strive to support colleagues through these challenging times. Employee wellbeing will continue to be fundamental to our success as an organisation and we plan to continue to enhance our work in this area through this year and beyond.”

Health@Work, like many organisations in 2020, had to adapt to remote working and conducting assessments digitally. The assessment consisted of and a mix of self-assessment and evidence reviews, team meetings, in-depth interviews, and staff surveys. The accreditation involved three stages, a review of the evidence provided, an employee survey and evaluation of observational evidence (e.g., photographic evidence regarding health and safety, culture, and welfare facilities).

Declan Doyle, Workplace Wellbeing Consultant at Health@Work, who conducted the Sanofi assessment noted: “During the digital accreditation process Sanofi provided multiple examples that demonstrated its ongoing commitment to the health and wellbeing of employees, such as their Take Care BWel! programme and a confidential counselling service which has been well utilised by staff. We are delighted to award Sanofi with the Workplace Wellbeing Charter and hope that industry peers will be inspired to achieve a shared goal of improving all aspects of health – mental, physical, and social.”

The journey to create a positive health environment for those working in the pharmaceutical industry continues and Sanofi remains open to collaborating internally and with industry peers on health and wellbeing initiatives. Sanofi will continue to embed a culture with employee wellbeing at the heart through the expected transition into new and unchartered territory post-COVID working life.