Winepress - June 2024

Caring and sharing

Hunter’s Wines and Forrest led the way in this year’s Wellness Week awards

BEV DOOLE

LEARNING TO breathe like a US Navy Seal, sessions on how to manage personal finances, and a 3pm finish on Fridays were among the innovative activities featured in this year’s Marlborough Wine Industry Wellness Week.

Held via instagram at the end of May, the week aims to showcase and share initiatives that support staff and encourage a culture of wellbeing in the workplace.

Hunter’s Wines won the Most Impactful Initiative Award for the way they integrated the 5 Ways of Wellbeing - Take Notice, Give, Be Active, Connect, and Keep Learning - during Mental Health week in September. Activities included a breathing exercise to reduce stress, donating pet food to Marlborough Four Paws, learning stretches to do while at work, a competition to match staff members to their baby photos, and taking part in a quiz night to strain the brain and raise funds for a good cause. Friday afternoon Wine Options are continuing to bring everyone together at the end of week. “We don’t have a big budget but small things can mean a lot,” says Karen Mckeown, who manages administration, health and safety and wellbeing at Hunter’s. “It’s important to come up with activities relevant to people and it’s got to be fun. It also shows that people at work care about you.” Forrest won the Leadership Award for two initiatives to boost physical health, foster team spirit and provide a balanced and fun work environment. All staff finish at 3pm on Fridays to have some extra time for selfcare, and a personal trainer comes in for the Never Miss a Monday boot camps - an energising workout to start the week. The award judges say these were all great wellness examples that could be easily replicated. With 24 entries this year (compared to 14 in 2023) it looks like the message is getting out. Judges also awarded three honourable mentions: Wither Hills for providing a relaxing chill-out room during harvest that’s now available all year; Yealands for the lunch-and-learn sessions on finances including budgeting, home ownership and Kiwisaver; and NZ Wineries for their enthusiastic instagram engagement during Wellness Week. Wellness Week is a collaboration with Farmstrong, a nationwide wellbeing programme for the rural community. farmstrong.co.nz