Good evening to you. 

I want to start by saluting all the companies that participated and submitted entries, and who have taken their safety journey seriously. I know everyone has come here to win and I wish everyone wins. I don't know if you did.  I hope you do. But if you didn’t, know that we don't guarantee a winner in every category. 

We have finalists and if you are a finalist, that means you pass the judge's first muster, but we don't guarantee a winner in every category. And if you did not win this year, it doesn't mean you can't win in the future.

In fact, many who have won in the past didn't win in the first, second, and sometimes, even in the third attempt. So, if you are truly committed to your safety journey, you will take the learnings from it and come back.  Because it's a good opportunity to not just get an award but to look at your whole system and your processes to ensure that you are in fact, achieving the objectives that you set. 

So let me in that light, thank our Title Sponsor Woodside Energy – you guys have been with us since the beginning and continue to do that. Kelly-Anne as well as Carla and Sheldon, thank you for all that you do to support us. We thank you very, very much and without your support, this may not have gotten to the 14th year.  So, thanks very much. 

We also want to welcome Ansa Motors as a Platinum Sponsor this year. Thank you to the Ansa Motors team. I also want to give a special mention to a “big little” company called Sygma Environmental which has been supporting us, consistently. Your commitment to health, safety, and security in the environment plays an absolutely critical role in making this possible. 

Now, with all the resources in the world, none of this would be possible without the judges. So, on behalf of the board and the team at AMCHAM, I really cannot express the true depth of our gratitude for all that you do. You take time out of your busy schedules, you fit judging into your work, and you give really out of a commitment to give back and to share your knowledge and your expertise. So, Gerard: to you and your team: thank you, thank you, thank you. Let’s give them a round of applause.

This year, once again, we received a high number of applications across the various award categories. I am pleased to see that so many companies recognize the value of these awards and, more importantly, the significant commitment required to build and maintain a robust HSE culture within their organizations.

Tonight, we gather not only to celebrate the outstanding contributions of businesses to Health, Safety, and the Environment but also to reflect on how we, as leaders and professionals, can continue to build safer, more inclusive, and more supportive workplaces for all.

Therefore, I want to focus on an area that has been gaining more and more attention. You would see it more intricately intertwined in the agenda for the conference both this year and certainly over the last few years. It’s an area that we think deserves more attention, and that is Mental Health in the workplace.

Of course, we know how important physical health and safety is, but we believe that if we shine more of a light on mental health in the workplace, we would be doing more to create physically safer workspaces. 

It's not something that we hear about that frequently. Those of us who are not maybe in HR or even deep in our HSC or HOP journeys, but it's something that I think we have to ask ourselves: how seriously are we treating mental health as a business imperative in a people-first work environment?

Studies worldwide show that one in four people (that’s the equivalent of two people on every table) will experience a mental health issue in any given year. The workplace can be both a trigger and a safe space to mental health challenges. We're still coming out of the effects of the pandemic, economic uncertainty, and the complex work-life balance that we all face. And so mental health concerns have to become more prominent.

Here in Trinidad and Tobago as in many places, we're beginning to see more businesses step up not just because of the right thing to do but because you understand the strategic advantage to doing so. We know that organizations prioritizing mental health see the benefits of stronger employee engagement, higher productivity, and increased loyalty. 

So, to those of you who are already putting in place more robust mental health practices we salute you. We say thank you for your leadership and we encourage you to share. For those of you who are trying to enhance your mental health support, please continue. Reach out if you need support. 

While some people see HSSE as focusing on physical well-being and environmental sustainability, it’s important to understand that HSE also encompasses psychological and emotional well-being. Over the next two days at the 28th Annual HSSE Conference, you’ll hear more about these topics. 

Supporting mental health though, is not about just reducing stress or preventing burnout, or offering counseling services, though these are important. It's about creating a culture where employees feel safe to speak openly about their mental health concerns, and their mental health challenges and where support systems are in place to guide them through the challenges. And where the stigma surrounding mental health is actively broken down. 

Moreover, supporting mental health in the workplace is not just a nice thing to do or a good thing to do; It’s a sound business strategy. Research from the WHO shows that for every dollar that is spent on treating common mental health issues at work, businesses can see up to a four-dollar return in improving productivity and reducing absenteeism. So, essentially, we are looking at a 400 percent ROI. 

But beyond the numbers, it's just a good thing to do. It's the right thing to do. Investing in mental health is about showing employees that their value extends beyond work tasks. It's about recognizing that mental health and well-being are just as important as physical safety. It's about communicating that we see each other. That we're a team. That we listen to one another. That we hear our concerns. And that we genuinely care about each other's overall well-being.

The connection therefore between psychological safety and mental health is really, really clear and important. When psychological safety becomes embedded in our workplace cultures, it doesn't just foster higher performance and innovation. It directly improves mental health and well-being. So, we have to challenge ourselves as leaders to investigate and to ask ourselves critically and to create feedback loops to see whether we are creating psychologically safe workplaces. Because many of us think that we are, but we're not, or we're not doing it enough. 

I was speaking to a senior leader this weekend and he was telling me about a town hall that they had for an hour and a half where he thought it was a great engagement. But when he looked at the data, out of about 120 people participating in the town hall, 12 people spoke (10 from the company and 2 contractors). So, is that data leading us to the conclusion that we are creating environments where people feel psychologically safe? 

And then we have to ask ourselves how often we allow ourselves to be vulnerable with our teams. So, for years, I've been telling my team, “Come to me if you have a problem. Let me know what's going on so I can help you solve it.” But more recently, I've been asking myself, “Am I just saying that and showing something different?” Because if people don't feel like they can come to you in the first place, they're not. 

And I'll share this, coincidentally on World Mental Health Day, I had to take a mental health day. I shared that with my team. Stuart, let me publicly thank you for your support. Thankfully, we have an environment where I could go to my boss and say, “Look, these things are going on. I need a little time”, and then I could go to my team and say, “Guys, thanks for calling. Thanks for picking up the slack but this is what's going on.” 

I think when we do that, hopefully, what I was able to communicate to them was that it's okay if you need some time if something is happening that may not be work-related but makes it difficult to be at work and be present. I prefer you take the time. Let's see if you need support beyond time and what we need to do, right? So, I think, as leaders we need to open up with our teams if we want them to open up with us. 

So, we hope that moving forward our workplace can be a model for psychological safety and an environment where people know that they are respected regardless of what role they perform or any other factor, and a space where people can genuinely voice their fears because then it will be a better organization. 

And I know that all of you who are on your HSE journey, understand that we can't focus on blame, right? We need to find ways to get feedback. So, when leaders prioritize mental health and lead by example, it sends a clear message to the entire organization.

I close as we recognize the achievements of our finalists tonight, let us remember that true Excellence in HSE is not just about physical safety, it's about creating a culture where Mental Health is nurtured, supported, and prioritized. By making mental health a central component of our great strategies, we not only improve the lives of our employees but also build stronger, more resilient organizations.

And finally, I'd like to congratulate all of our finalists tonight. Your dedication to Excellence in HSE is inspiring. I hope you'll continue to lead by example, advancing health, safety, and well-being across every aspect of your organization. And I've always enjoyed seeing how seriously people take this and companies take this when they take their tables and dress up and come tonight. So, I wish you a great evening. I hope you enjoy it. 

Thank you.

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