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IMPORTANT INFORMATION
All data as at 31 December 2024, unless specified otherwise. This document is issued for information purposes only. It does not constitute the provision of financial, investment or other professional advice. We strongly recommend you seek independent professional advice prior to investing. The value of investments and the income derived from them may fall as well as rise. Investors may not get back the amount originally invested and may lose money. Any forward-looking statements are based on CCLA’s current opinions, expectations and projections. CCLA undertakes no obligations to update or revise these. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated. All names, logos and brands shown in this document are the property of their respective owners and do not imply endorsement. These have been used for the purposes of this document only. CCLA Investment Management Limited (a company registered in England and Wales with company number 2183088), whose registered address is One Angel Lane, London EC4R 3AB, is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
result
An estimated 12 billion working days are lost globally each year to depression and anxiety alone, at an annual cost of $1 trillion in lost productivity. In the business context, mental ill-health at work costs employers in the private sector an estimated average of over £1,800 per employee (every employee) each year. Meanwhile, according to Deloitte, for every £1 invested in mental health interventions in the workplace, companies receive an average return of £4.70.
The CCLA Corporate Mental Health Benchmark, launched in 2022, aims to inform and accelerate progress in this area – an area that has historically been hidden behind closed doors in the workplace. We acknowledge that benchmarking is a long game, but at three years old, our initiative appears to be doing its job in driving corporate performance on workplace mental health.
In 2024, the CCLA Corporate Mental Health Benchmark evaluated 220 listed companies against 27 assessment criteria based on the information publicly available during the assessment period.
The criteria cover four thematic pillars:
- management commitment and policy
- governance and management
- leadership and innovation
- performance reporting and impact.
The performance framework recognises that every company is at a different stage in the journey towards integrating mental health into its business strategy and reporting.
2024 Corporate Mental Health Benchmark in numbers
0
companies assessed
in 2024
0
companies engaged
directly with CCLA on mental health1
0
companies mentioned
the CCLA Corporate Mental Health Benchmark in their public reporting2
0
companies improved
sufficiently to move up by One or more Performance Tier
1 Includes engagements between the launch of the 2023 benchmark and the end of 2024.
2 BT Group, Centrica, Dunelm Group, Experian, HSBC Holdings, J Sainsbury, NatWest Group, Roche Holding, Serco Group and Weir Group.
Millie Nice
Global investor coalition
on workplace mental health
Already, the CCLA Corporate Mental Health Benchmark is starting to serve as an important engagement tool and an accountability mechanism for a growing global coalition of institutional investors and asset owners. The global investor statement on workplace mental health was launched in July 2022 with 29 founding signatories representing $7 trillion in assets under management.
At the end of 2024, the investor statement had 56 investor signatories with a combined $10 trillion in assets under management. Given the level of engagement we are already seeing – both from companies covered by the benchmark and from investors – we are confident that the benchmark will continue to provide incentives for the world’s largest businesses to improve.
Corporate Mental Health Benchmark: 2024 improvers
The 36 companies listed below improved their score sufficiently between their 2023 and 2024 mental health assessments to move up by one or more Performance Tier. For full company rankings, refer to the CCLA Corporate Mental Health Benchmark reports.
*Not held in CCLA portfolio(s) as at 31 December 2024.
Top improvers by percentage score 2022–2024
The following companies improved their score by 10 or more percentage points in the CCLA Corporate Mental Health Benchmark between its inception (in 2022) and 2024. For the full company rankings, refer to the CCLA Corporate Mental Health Benchmark reports.
*Not held in CCLA portfolio(s) as at 31 December 2024.
Progress on mental health
Progress on mental health
The outcomes of our engagement on mental health in 2024 are set out below.
KEY
No response
Discussions ongoing
Positive change
Met engagement target
Abbott Laboratories
Health care
Abbott remains in Tier 4 in the 2024 benchmark. This was the first year in which the company engaged with the benchmarking process. It acknowledged the recommendations coming out of the 2023 benchmark assessment and reviewed and responded to its 2024 preliminary assessment in July of that year. We await the outcome of the 2025 assessment.
Accenture
Information technology
We met Accenture in May 2024 to discuss the Corporate Mental Health Benchmark recommendations. During the call we were told that the company already had a team working through CCLA’s recommendations to guide efforts ahead of the next assessment. The company ranks in Tier 3 for the second year running but has increased its score marginally since last year. The company notes challenges in reporting, given it spans 120 countries, but we believe the commitment is there and that improvement will come with time.
Admiral Group
Financials
We have been in regular contact with Admiral on mental health since 2022. Having been ranked in Tier 4 in 2022 and 2023, in 2024 the company improved its score sufficiently to move up to Tier 3. The company responded to a collaborative investor letter sent in July 2024 and is now working on a gap analysis of its own practices and disclosures against the benchmark criteria.
Adobe
Information Technology
Adobe engaged with the benchmarking process in 2024. Its score decreased marginally since 2023, which was disappointing, since the company stated an intention to address some of the gaps we had highlighted during a meeting with the company on this topic in 2023. It remains in Tier 4 and we will continue to press ahead on this engagement.
AIA Group
Financials
AIA was new to the mental health benchmark in 2023 and was ranked in Tier 4 in both 2023 and 2024. It did not engage with the benchmarking process in 2024, but it did respond to a collaborative investor letter in November. We had a dedicated call with the company in January 2025 to discuss its key recommendations.
Alphabet
Communication services
Alphabet remains in the lowest Performance Tier of the benchmark in 2024. It started to respond to emails at the end of 2023 and reviewed its preliminary assessment in 2024. We have not yet had a dedicated call with the company to discuss mental health, and representatives have told us that they do not accommodate individual calls. We will consider a different approach in 2025.
Amazon
Consumer discretionary
We had two dedicated engagement calls with Amazon’s Global Head of Behavioural Health to discuss mental health in 2024. The first took place in August, after the 2024 benchmark assessments had taken place; the second followed the publication of the benchmark ranking. The company was disappointed to drop a Performance Tier in 2024 but is confident it can improve in 2025. We are now in regular contact and plan to meet again in the first quarter of 2025 to catch up on progress.
Ashtead Group
Industrials
Having initially improved its performance in the benchmark between 2022 and 2023, Ashtead Group slipped back to its original position, in Tier 4, in 2024. Discussions continue.
ASML Holdings
Information technology
ASML has been ranked in Tier 4 in 2022, 2023 and 2024. During a call in May 2024, we discussed multiple ways in which the company could improve its approach. We will request a further meeting in 2025 now that the company has received up-to-date recommendations.
AstraZeneca
Health care
We had our first dedicated call with AstraZeneca on mental health in April 2024. It was productive but did not lead to better performance. Unfortunately the company dropped down to Tier 4 in 2024. It has not yet responded to the most recent collaborative investor letter, sent to its CEO in November 2024. We will follow up in 2025.
Broadcom
Information technology
Broadcom increased its score marginally in the 2024 Corporate Mental Health Benchmark but remains in Tier 5. We have not had any communication from the company and will continue efforts to secure a meeting in 2025.
Bunzl
Industrials
Bunzl has been ranked in Tier 5 of the Corporate Mental Health Benchmark since 2022 and has not responded to engagement. We will follow up again in 2025.
Cisco Systems
Information technology
Cisco engaged with the benchmarking process in 2024, including reviewing and commenting on its preliminary assessment report. However, unfortunately it moved down a Performance Tier, to Tier 4.
Coca-Cola Co
Consumer staples
Coca-Cola is ranked in Tier 5 (worst) in the Corporate Mental Health Benchmark. The company responded to a collaborative investor letter sent to its CEO in November 2024, and we had our first call with the company on mental health in the same month. We suggested areas in the company’s website and reporting where it could add certain information about its mental health approach, which was appreciated. The company does not seem hugely motivated to improve, but the 2025 benchmark outcome will be illuminating. We hope to work with Coca-Cola towards incremental improvement over time.
Compass Group
Consumer discretionary
Compass engaged with us throughout 2023 and 2024 on mental health and has been assessed as Tier 3 in each year. Its score has declined marginally over the three years so we will be following up in 2025.
Costco Wholesale*
Consumer staples
After many attempts to get a response, we finally heard from Costco in May 2024. We raised specific questions relating to mental health via email; these were answered, although the company remains in Tier 5 in 2024 and is reluctant to meet. We have secured a call with the company for the first quarter of 2025.
Danaher
Health care
Danaher has increased its score benchmark marginally since 2023, although it remains in Tier 5 and did not engage with the benchmarking process in 2024.
Deere & Co
Industrials
Deere & Co was new to the Corporate Mental Health Benchmark in 2023 and was assessed as Tier 4 in both 2023 and 2024. The company did not engage with us during the benchmarking period, but it did respond to a collaborative investor letter that was sent to the company’s CEO in November following the launch of the 2024 benchmark. We met the company in December to discuss the mental health framework and assessment timeline for 2025. Discussions will continue.
Diageo
Consumer staples
Diageo is one of the top improvers over three years, having improved its score by 17 percentage points since 2022 and being ranked in Tier 2 in 2024. We were in regular contact with the company in 2024 and it is motivated to continue its upwards trajectory. Key recommendations relate to mental health training for line managers and objective- and target-setting.
Experian
Industrials
Experian has engaged with us on mental health since 2022. After the publication of the first benchmark, we provided the company with detailed feedback and recommendations for improvement. Towards the end of the year, it duly notified us of a new publication, its ‘Global approach to mental health and wellbeing’, which outlines the company’s commitment to mental health. It details the scope, governance and management processes of its mental health commitments and includes clear performance reporting and impact metrics. As a result, Experian improved its benchmark score by 33 percentage points year on year and was able to move from Tier 3 in 2022 to Tier 1 in 2023. Experian retained its Tier 1 position in 2024, one of only six companies in the top Performance Tier in the UK benchmark.
Greggs
Consumer discretionary
Greggs informed us of new mental health disclosure in its annual report, published in April 2024. Unfortunately this came too late for the Corporate Mental Health Benchmark assessment in March, so the company remains in Tier 5. We are hopeful that the new disclosure will result in an uplift to the company’s performance in 2025.
Hermès International
Consumer discretionary
Hermès improved from Tier 5 to Tier 4 between 2022 and 2023, and retained its Tier 4 ranking in 2024. The company did not engage with the benchmarking process, but it did respond to a collaborative investor letter that was sent to the company’s CEO in November 2024. We had a call with the company in December, where it outlined its commitment to mental health and shared the news that it is preparing a new publication, due out in early 2025, that will include information on mental health.
Home Depot
Consumer discretionary
Home Depot engaged with the 2024 assessment process but remained in Tier 5. We have not had a dedicated call with the company on mental health but will aim to do so in 2025.
Honeywell International*
Industrials
Honeywell moved up from Tier 5 in 2023 to Tier 4 in 2024, scoring three times its original score from 2022. We have not had a dedicated engagement call with the company on mental health.
Informa
Communication services
Informa did not engage with the Corporate Mental Health Benchmark and did not improve its performance during the year, remaining in Tier 4.
Intertek Group
Industrials
It was a disappointment to us that Intertek remained in Tier 5 in 2024. From a call with the company in late 2022, we were led to believe that the benchmark report had been escalated to the CEO, who was very supportive of the initiative. We met with the company in December 2024 (after several failed attempts to get a response throughout the year). The team was responsive and seemed keen to improve, noting that they would like to work quickly in order to get the right information included in their upcoming reporting cycle.
Intuit
Information technology
Intuit remains in Tier 5 in 2024. During a call in July, we learned that it would be publishing its 2024 fiscal year corporate responsibility report in January 2025, which would be an opportunity to bring more information about mental health into the public domain. However, during a follow-up meeting in December, we were told that there would be little included on mental health in the new reporting framework. We have requested a further call in the first quarter of 2025, this time including the individual responsible for mental health at Intuit.
Johnson & Johnson
Health care
Johnson & Johnson engaged with the benchmarking process in both 2023 and 2024. Unfortunately the company dropped down to Tier 4 in 2024 as some of its disclosures were more than two years old and therefore out of scope of the assessment. It remains close to the boundary with Tier 3 so we are hopeful for a positive outcome in 2025.
Lloyds Banking Group*
Financials
Lloyds has engaged exceptionally well with the initiative. Having been ranked in the top Performance Tier in 2022, the company received a new CEO and lost some of its focus on mental health. As a consequence, it moved down to Tier 2 in 2023 and remains there in 2024. Lloyds has stated its intention to regain its Tier 1 status and we have been in discussions with the company throughout the year.
London Stock Exchange Group
Financials
The London Stock Exchange Group engaged with the initiative throughout 2023 and 2024. It increased its score in the Corporate Mental Health Benchmark in 2024, albeit remaining in Tier 4. Discussions continue and we are hopeful that the company will move up a Tier in 2025.
L’Oréal
Consumer staples
L’Oréal increased its score significantly in 2024 and moved up from Tier 4 to Tier 3. During a meeting in November, the team said they had worked hard on mental health and were pleased to see this work reflected in the benchmark results.
LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton
Consumer discretionary
LVMH engaged with the benchmarking process in 2024 and remains in Performance Tier 3. Having been placed in Tier 4 in 2022, it has improved its underlying score by 15 percentage points since the first assessment and now ranks in the top quintile of global companies assessed. We have a meeting scheduled for January 2025.
Mastercard
Financials
Mastercard has engaged with us on mental health since 2022. We had three meetings with the company in 2023 and a further call in 2024. At our most recent meeting, company representatives disclosed that following 2023’s feedback, they built a dedicated project to follow our guidance and align with the benchmark. They shared the news that they had rolled out a mental health champions programme and that it had received 10 times the expected uptake. Between 2022 and 2024 the company increased its score in the benchmark by 26 percentage points, resulting in a move from Tier 4 to Tier 3.
McDonald’s
Consumer discretionary
McDonald’s engaged with the benchmarking process and responded to our queries in April 2024. We have not had a dedicated meeting to discuss mental health with the company and it remains in Tier 5 in 2024. We will attempt to secure a meeting in 2025.
Medtronic
Health care
Medtronic ranks in Tier 4 in the benchmark in 2024. While it engaged with the benchmarking process in 2024, we have not had a dedicated call with the company on mental health. At year end, it had not responded to a collaborative investor letter that was sent out in November. We will follow up in 2025.
Microsoft
Information technology
We had a detailed call in late 2023 and the company engaged with the benchmarking process in 2024. While Microsoft remains in Tier 5 in 2024, it has responded to a collaborative engagement letter that we sent to the company’s CEO in November, and we have a call scheduled for January 2025.
Nestlé
Consumer staples
Nestlé engaged with the benchmarking process but remains in Tier 4 in 2024. The company responded to a collaborative investor letter that we sent to say that it had been passed to the CEO’s office. We have a meeting scheduled for January 2025.
NextEra Energy
Utilities
The company has not responded to engagement on mental health in 2024 and remains in Tier 5. We will follow up in 2025.
Nike*
Consumer discretionary
Nike remains in Tier 4 in 2024 and did not respond to engagement during the year. Nonetheless, its benchmark score has improved steadily year on year, having increased by 15 percentage points since 2022.
Novartis*
Health care
Novartis was assessed as Tier 3 in 2022. It engaged with us throughout 2023 and 2024. Having edged up into Tier 2 in 2023, it dropped a few points in 2024 and, as a result, slipped back down to Tier 3. Nevertheless, this represents top-quintile performance and we are in ongoing discussions to get the company higher in the ranking again. We have a meeting scheduled to discuss mental health in January 2025.
Novo Nordisk
Health care
Novo Nordisk told us it had taken our recommendations into account during the 2022 assessment period and made some improvements to its environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting portal. This took the form of increased disclosure on the company’s website covering management responsibility for health and safety (including mental health); health and safety certifications in production facilities; and physical and mental wellbeing performance data. As a result, the company moved up from Tier 5 in 2022 to Tier 4 in 2023. Novo Nordisk has continued to improve in 2024, now ranking in Tier 3, having increased its underlying benchmark score by 35 percentage points since 2022. We met the company in December 2024 to discuss how it could improve further ahead of the 2025 assessment.
NVIDIA
Information technology
NVIDIA is ranked in Tier 5 in the Corporate Mental Health Benchmark and did not respond to engagement on mental health in 2024.
PepsiCo*
Consumer staples
PepsiCo has ranked in Tier 4 in the Corporate Mental Health Benchmark for three years running and did not respond to engagement on mental health in 2024, despite multiple attempts to secure a meeting. It has not yet responded to a collaborative investor letter that we sent to the company’s CEO in November 2024.
Pfizer*
Health care
Pfizer was ranked in Tier 4 in 2022, 2023 and 2024 and did not engage with us on mental health in 2024. This is particularly disappointing for a health care company and we will follow up in 2025.
Procter & Gamble
Consumer staples
Procter & Gamble has engaged with this initiative for several years. In 2024, it again ranked in Tier 4; our contacts at the company voiced frustration at how difficult it is to get their work disclosed to the outside world due to a complex internal sign-off process. We were given a tour of the company’s head office in Geneva during a visit in September. The company’s score has increased by 12 percentage points since 2022.
Prudential
Financials
Having been ranked in Tier 3 in 2022 and 2023, the company moved up to Tier 2 in 2024. This followed regular communication with the company and two engagement calls in 2024, at which the company shared with us detailed analysis undertaken to establish the gaps in its mental health management systems and reporting framework. Prudential is the 10th biggest improver in the global mental health benchmark over three years and seems highly motivated to improve further.
Reckitt Benckiser Group
Consumer staples
Reckitt Benckiser has ranked in Tier 3 three years running. It has engaged with us during this time but we have not yet had a dedicated call to discuss mental health. Its score in the Corporate Mental Health Benchmark has improved marginally since 2022.
RELX
Industrials
RELX did not engage with the mental health benchmarking project in 2024 and fell from Tier 3 to Tier 4. This was because some of its key disclosures were more than two years old and therefore fell out of scope for the assessment.
Rio Tinto
Materials
Rio Tinto has engaged with us on mental health since 2021. The company has improved its score in the mental health benchmark by 30 percentage points since its first assessment in 2022 and is now ranked in Tier 2. During a meeting with the company in July 2024, we were told that the collaborative investor letter that we had sent to the company following the launch of the UK benchmark in June had been read by the CEO, who had praised the work and given the mental health team further impetus to reach Tier 1.
Roche Holdings
Health care
Having been ranked in Tier 5 in 2022, Roche improved sufficiently to move up two Performance Tiers, to Tier 3, in 2023. In 2024, it improved yet again and made it into Tier 2 (one of only four companies to achieve this ranking in the global benchmark). This makes the company the second largest improver in the global mental health benchmark since the project’s inception; it has improved its score by more than 50% in three years. We are in regular contact with the company on mental health and met several times during 2024.
S&P Global
Financials
S&P Global was new to the Corporate Mental Health Benchmark in 2024 and ranked as Tier 4. It has not yet responded to engagement.
Sage Group
Information technology
Sage Group engaged with the initiative and successfully moved up to Tier 3 in 2024. Its score has increased by 29 percentage points since 2022.
Siemens
Industrials
Our engagement with the company has been positive but so far only included those responsible for mental health at Siemens UK. While the UK is seen as more progressive on mental health than the rest of the group, it can only influence and not control the group activities. Unfortunately, the company lost a few points in 2024 and slipped down to Tier 4. Discussions continue.
Spirax Group
Industrials
Spirax Group was new to the Corporate Mental Health Benchmark in 2024. During a call in February, we were told that the timing was fortuitous as the company was about to launch a new website and new disclosures, and had an opportunity to publish a new mental health policy. Spirax ranked in Tier 3 in its first assessment and we look forward to seeing how it performs in 2025.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co
Information technology
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co has engaged with us on mental health since its first assessment, in 2022. Following receipt of the initial recommendations, the company requested a call in 2023, which was attended by the Head of Investor Relations plus five members of the HR and ESG teams. They had prepared a PowerPoint and showed us screenshots of upcoming new disclosures and information relating to mental health, subsequently released shortly after the 2023 assessment period. These efforts paid off and the company moved up to Tier 4 in 2024.
Texas Instruments
Information technology
Despite multiple attempts to make contact, Texas Instruments did not engage with us on mental health in 2024. Its score has increased marginally since 2022 but the company remains in Tier 5.
Thermo Fisher Scientific
Health care
Thermo Fisher moved up from Tier 5 in 2022 to Tier 4 in 2023 and remained there in 2024. It has engaged with the benchmarking process but we have not had a dedicated call to discuss mental health to date. Its score has increased 17 percentage points since 2022.
Unilever
Consumer staples
Unilever has engaged with us on mental health for three years and its score has increased by 11 percentage points since 2022. The company is now ranked in Tier 2 and we are in regular contact.
Union Pacific
Industrials
Union Pacific has remained in Tier 4 since its first assessment in 2022. In November 2024, we sent a collaborative investor letter to the company’s CEO along with detailed recommendations as to how the company could improve. We had a detailed call with the company to discuss these recommendations in December 2024. During the meeting, the company shared details of its mental health approach, some of which are not yet disclosed. Company representatives acknowledged the opportunity to improve and said they plan to work on enhancing disclosures on mental health, which they said is a big priority at Union Pacific.
UnitedHealth Group
Health care
UnitedHealth began to engage with us on mental health in 2023, but it has been assessed as Tier 5 for three years running.
Visa
Financials
Visa was assessed as Tier 4 in 2023 and 2024. It responded to a collaborative investor letter sent to the company’s CEO in November 2024 and we met in December. The company said that it had been using CCLA’s benchmark over the past two years to help inform its strategy and governance framework. While they felt they did not have enough to disclose in 2023, they told us they were confident in their ability to improve their ranking in 2025.
*Not held in CCLA portfolio(s) as at 31 December 2024.