- Lander & Rogers recognised for WELL Certified™ Platinum office
- Firm tackles legal profession's biggest challenge through industry-leading focus on wellbeing
Leading law firm Lander & Rogers has announced it has been awarded WELL Certified™ Platinum status in recognition of its commitment to delivering a healthy, sustainable and innovative workplace for its people.
In an Australian law-firm first, the globally recognised certification is an important development in an industry marred by some of the highest rates of mental health issues of any profession.
"The legal profession is well known for having high instances of anxiety and depression and mental-health related issues. We take the physical and mental wellbeing of our people seriously. Our focus on wellness is designed to address and reduce the factors that contribute negatively to individual wellbeing, and to deliver programs and support that enhance productivity and work-life satisfaction," says chief executive partner Genevieve Collins.
According to Ms Collins, the firm takes a holistic approach to wellness focused on five pillars to sustaining comprehensive wellbeing when working. These include physical health; mental fitness; community and belonging; purpose, meaning & transparency; and personal safety, with the firm's pillars aligning closely with the WELL Certified approach.
The WELL Building Standard is an innovative evidenced-based global benchmark for measuring, certifying and monitoring workplace design and policies to enhance wellbeing at work. Delivered by International WELL Building Institute pbc™ (IWBI), the rating system focuses on 10 key concepts including air, water, nourishment, physical movement, light, thermal comfort, sound, building materials, mind and community.
The firm exceeded the 80 points required to achieve the WELL Certified Platinum standard, which is the highest level in the ranking system.
In exceeding the standard, Lander & Rogers has deployed initiatives including hybrid working, caring and parental leave policies; access to wellbeing sessions and 24/7 counselling; subsidies for physical wellbeing activities including Pilates, yoga and massages; annual flu vaccinations and subsidised skin checks; indoor plants and natural building materials; thermal comfort aids; air and water filtration systems; ergonomic height-adjustable desks, chairs and curved monitors; noise cancelling headsets; fresh fruit, nutritious snacks and transparency of ingredients, and more.
The three-year certification has been awarded to just 16 domestic and 123 offshore projects since the framework was established in 2014. The list of domestic operators with the top-level certification is dominated by property and investment sectors including private equity firm Quintessential Equity, and funds manager Impact Investing Group, as well as Arup, Charter Hall, Lendlease Management Services and Investa.
Although the accreditation specifically applies to the firm's Melbourne office in the newly redeveloped Olderfleet building at 477 Collins Street, Melbourne, Ms Collins noted that the initiatives had largely been rolled out to each of its offices nationally.
"We take a national approach to our programs, employee benefits and physical spaces to provide equal access to all of our people. We intend to apply for official certification for each of our offices in the near future," said Ms Collins.
Lander & Rogers is recognised as an industry leader for its commitment to the wellbeing of its people. In 2019 the firm was awarded Wellness Initiative of the Year in the Lawyers Weekly Australian Law Awards and Excellence in Employee Health & Wellbeing in the Australasian Law Awards for its work with The Resilience Project to develop a holistic wellbeing program focused on building resilience and gratitude.
About the International WELL Building Institute
The International WELL Building Institute pbc™ (IWBI) is a public benefit corporation and the world’s leading organization focused on deploying people first places to advance a global culture of health.
The WELL Building Standard (WELL) applies the science of how physical and social environments affect human health, well-being and performance. Developed over 10 years and backed by the latest scientific research, WELL outlines key building-level and organisational strategies across 10 categories.
Since the launch of WELL in 2014, 2,000+ companies, including over 100 of the Fortune 500, have adopted WELL as an evidence-based roadmap for scaling health across their organisation.
