“When we launched this company with my husband Timothée, our users told us: “you are the therapists who bring the pep,” says Juliette Lachenal. “And today it’s a name we really love, and we say we are the Pepsi that is good for your health.”
Specifically, PepPsy tackles the issue of discomfort in the workplace. In France, about one in two employees has experienced psychological distress in the past 12 months.
“This is often something that makes leaders quite uncomfortable because, regardless of the type of organization, whether an association or a company, and regardless of its size, they care deeply about ensuring that things run smoothly, that employees are happy and engaged.”
To achieve this, the company can and must intervene. Indeed, Article L4121-1 of the Labor Code requires employers to ensure the safety and protect the physical and mental health of their employees.
“There are causes related to work, but there are also causes related to personal life,” analyzes Juliette Lachenal. “And our role is to bring meaning back into all of this,” she specifies.
Support begins with collective listening. To transform an organization, one must think collectively, according to Juliette Lachenal. This is how we can begin to identify what creates stress and all the internal violence situations such as harassment, which lead to absenteeism. How can we act on these risk factors and reduce them?
There are two complementary approaches to this. The first is to reduce the risk factors. The second is to increase the protective factors.
This work will be done hand in hand with the company, including HR, CSE, management, and quality and safety services, using a tool called “the social performance mural,” which helps identify psychosocial risks in the company while also integrating individual risk factors. Following this mural, a concrete action plan is implemented.
“The advantage of tackling mental health issues in the workplace head-on is primarily to prevent human tragedies, and it will also have a real impact on the social performance of the company, as well as its economic performance. Employees who are well are engaged employees who will perform well. So there is every reason to act, step by step,” concludes Juliette Lachenal.
