Vibe Check: What Grab is doing to help employees with their mental well-being

Vibe Check: Mental Health in the Startup World is a Tech in Asia podcast where writer and editor Winston Zhang speaks to startup leaders and mental health professionals to see what he can learn from them when it comes to managing his mental well-being.

As much as mental well-being is a personal responsibility, taking care of it isn’t something we can do entirely on our own – that’s why therapists and counselors are so important. Just having someone with whom you can talk things through and bounce around thoughts can make a world of difference.

But in Singapore, therapy sessions aren’t cheap, and they’re also usually not covered by insurance. Subsidized and free options exist, but be prepared to wait weeks – if not months – to get a slot. That’s not exactly a viable option for someone who’s on the verge of or facing a mental health emergency.

Perhaps we can tackle this from another angle, like where most Singaporeans spend a quarter of their adult lives: at work. With our jobs playing such a significant role in our lives, can employers do more to support the mental well-being of their employees?

In this episode of Vibe Check: Mental Health in the Startup World, Joyce Lim, an HR lead at Grab, talks about how the tech giant helped its staff to navigate their way through the mental health challenges posed by Covid-19.

Timecodes:

00:00 – Intro music
00:28 – Hi, I’m Winston
01:09 – Welcome to Vibe Check
02:21 – Can employers do more about their staff’s mental health?
02:56 – Meet Grab HR lead Joyce Lim
03:46 – People’s personal and work lives are incredibly intertwined
05:09 – Employers are increasingly expected to do more
05:57 – Changes in conversations around wellbeing
08:35 – How Grab helped its people adjust during Covid-19
11:41 – Bringing people together
12:37 – Making resources available
13:53 – Looking after HR people, while they look after employees
15:01 – The benefits of having a certified counsellor on payroll
17:29 – The next step in mental health care
19:27 – Episode five teaser: Tips and advice from mental health professionals

Featured interviewee

• Joyce Lim, head of people operations business partner, tech at Grab

Host

• Winston Zhang, writer and editor at Tech in Asia Studios

Episode Transcript: