Contributed by Darren Hockley, managing director of the UK-based e-Learning provider DeltaNet International.

According to the UK’s Office for Naitonal Statistics, (ONS) almost one in five adults in Great Britain are experiencing some sort of depression during the coronavirus pandemic.

As business leaders, we would be amiss to ignore the impact this will undoubtedly have on our workforce, bearing in mind a staggering 70 million working days are lost each year in the UK due to mental health problems—and all signs point to this figure rising.

More than this, as employers, we shouldn’t forget the duty of care we owe to our employees. Indeed, it’s one of the reasons health and safety training exists: All reasonable steps must be taken to ensure the health, safety, and wellbeing of those in our employment—and this includes mental wellbeing.