In recognition of Bell Let’s Talk day Jan 24th – CMHA partnered with the Employability Network to host a 3 part series related to workplace mental health. The first part was a panel discussion was facilitated with (4) inspirational testimonials from Tom Hickey, Tony Hall, Mitch Roy, Stephen Douris. The Breakfast event was held at the Cornwall Civic Complex with over 70 employers in attendance.
Stephen Douris, a former health and safety representative in the trucking industry talks about his experience with a friend, a employee he tried to help during his time working.
“Pierre was outgoing, fun to be with-and then suicidal because they wouldn’t give him a second chance.” Pierre took his own life and the effect can still be seen on Stephen’s face as he struggles to tell the story. He continued “When we have our employees suffering, we have to look at and we have to say: what can we do for them? Not what can they do for us. How can we get these people back on their feet. I was one of those people, I was suffering, I was down and out and someone gave me a hand up. She’s still with me today, my wife, if it wasn’t for her I wouldn’t be here.”
It’s time to end the stigma and start sharing our collective experiences, thank you to the team at CMHA and The Employability Network for this groundbreaking initiative.
#BellLetsTalk
