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Charlotte Haye 19th January 2021

HGV Drivers and Mental Health

When it comes to essential services, the HGV drivers are often in the forgotten sector. But the truth is that without HGV drivers, most industries would grind to a halt. Without someone to deliver goods and supplies, many businesses simply wouldn’t be able to function. That’s a lot of pressure to begin with, but when you add in the fact that there has been a constant driver shortage for many years now, HGV drivers across the country have been feeling the strain. So if you employ HGV drivers, you should be doing everything you can to ensure the physical and mental health of your drivers stays in tip-top shape.

Physical is Easy

The truth is, making sure your drivers physical health is good is fairly straightforward. Aside from the fact that all drivers have to take a medical exam before they’re even allowed to earn their license, most of the issues HGV drivers experience are easy to predict and treat. For example, some of the physical issues HGV drivers might experience include:

Spine and neck pain
Injuries from heavy lifting and/or jerking
Eye strain
Chronic fatigue

All of these issues can be addressed with proper training, instruction and preventative healthcare options. So as long as you are partnering with a high-quality training school and providing a good healthcare package, you should be able to manage all of these physical risks.

Mental Health is Hard

The challenge comes when we start to talk about mental health. The current HGV workspace is geared towards protecting workers physical health, and it doesn’t really take mental health into account. But as society progresses, more and more attention if being paid to the importance of mental health, and we are getting a better understanding of what kinds of issues people face, and the impact they can have on people’s lives. The good news is, we’re also getting a better understanding of how to handle mental health problems, and what can be done to prevent them.

Unfortunately, the nature of HGV driving means that some mental health problems are more common than others. For example, HGV drivers commonly experience:

Depression
Anxiety
Stress
Loneliness

According to studies by mental health charity MIND, 30% of illnesses in the transport and logistics industry are mental health related – but since this is a self-reported survey, the rates might actually be much higher.

It also doesn’t help that the HGV industry is still dominated by men, which means that number is almost certainly higher than 30%. This is because we live in a society where men have been raised to show no signs of weakness, especially when it comes to mental health. And while there have been efforts to change this moving forward, it means many employers wont even know a driver is struggling until it’s too late. Because men are much less likely to admit there is a problem or seek help, the suicide rate in men, particularly in the trades, is staggeringly high. Research has also shown that 95% of men who call in sick because of a mental health problem actually lie about the reason, making it all the harder to get them the help and support they need.

How to Help

Understand the Problem: First off, you need to understand that mental health is very challenging to work with, especially in the logistics field. A lot of things about driving HGVs can create mental health problems, including difficult working hours, night shifts, tight deadlines and even traffic. It all builds up to some significant mental health challenges. By understanding what could be causing the issues, you can start to create solutions.

Provide Resources: It’s always going to be challenging for people to come forward with mental health issues, especially men in the HGV sector. So it’s important to provide a safe and secure environment, with no judgement and no fear of losing their jobs for struggling with mental health. Whether that’s providing a hotline for drivers to use, instating ‘mental health days’, or providing free and confidential counselling to employees at any time.

Promote Healthy Habits: While this might sound like it belongs in the physical section, promoting a good diet and exercise among drivers really can help with mental health struggles. Diet and exercise have been proven time and time again to contribute to mood and the regulatory hormones in our bodies, making it easier to be positive and lifting your mood. So where you can, promote a healthy lifestyle in your drivers, and provide the tools to make that possible.

Company Culture: Above all, focussing on creating a culture of openness and acceptance in your company is essential. HGV drivers who are struggling with their mental health need to be able to feel secure and safe in coming forward with issues, and not fear for losing their jobs, or even just being judged. This is the best way to promote positive mental health in the workplace, and keep your drivers happy.

If you would like some advice about how to help your drivers and support their mental health, we are here to help. At Easy as HGV, we take mental health very seriously, and make sure to include plenty of content in our training sessions around noticing the warning signs, managing your mental health and what resources you can access if you need support. As an employer, we can also provide tips and suggestions for what you could do to improve the mental health support you offer your drivers. If you would like to find out more, just get in touch with the team today.

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