Starbucks commitment to supporting the mental health of partners
As part of it’s pledge that mental health matters, Starbucks is offering a suite of new benefits and resources for its partners, including a free subscription to the mediation app Headspace, a reimagined Employee Assistance Program, Mental Health First Aid training and more.
Updated June 23, 2020
Mental health needs are diverse, and in fact the mental health crisis is incredibly complex, with 1 in 5 adults experiencing some form of mental illness each year. Our partners and customers experience it firsthand every day – in their personal lives, in their stores, and in the neighborhoods we serve.
At an event we held in September for store managers and field leaders from the U.S. and Canada, we laid out our commitment by declaring that at Starbucks, mental health matters. As our chief partner officer, Lucy Helm said, “Together, we’re on a mission to take a stand, help break the stigma, and get even more partners and their family the support they need.”
- It started with bringing 12,000 store leaders together for an unprecedented session on mental well-being and emotional health. Since then, our partners have started sharing dialogue, feedback and ideas regarding mental health and wellbeing in our company’s Mental Health Matters online forum, with nearly 5,000 partners contributing. Partners involved in our Disability Advocacy Network have also continued the dialogue and have been providing input along the way to help shape this initiative.
- More than 200,000 partners have participated in Third Place Development Series training, tackling topics like loneliness, vulnerability, courage, and the power of small acts and conversation to strengthen human connection.
- We’ve partnered with organizations that share our purpose to help break the stigma around mental health, including the Born This Way Foundation to bring kindness to customers on World Kindness Day, and Team Red White & Blue and Team Rubicon on Veterans Day to reaffirm our commitment to our country’s military personnel, their families and their mental health.
- In January, we added Headspace to our suite of comprehensive benefits and resources to support our partners, as research shows many mental health-related benefits of meditation. Partners can sign up for a free Headspace subscription and have access to hundreds of themed sessions and easy guided meditations on everything from stress and sleep to focus and anxiety.
- In March, we announced a completely reimagined mental healthcare benefit in partnership with Lyra to connect more partners to quality care that meets their specific needs. Beginning April 6, Starbucks will provide all U.S. partners and eligible family members access to 20 sessions a year with a mental health therapist or coach through Lyra, all at no cost to the user.
- Finally, in June, we delivered on our commitment to provide mental health training to partners on an ongoing basis. Starbucks Mental Health Fundamentals Training was created in partnership with the National Council for Behavioral Health, and inspired by Mental Health First Aid, with the goal to provide partners with a resource that can help them listen for, recognize and respond to signs of mental health and substance use issues and provide resources available to their teams. The training is currently available for U.S. assistant store managers, store managers and non-retail partners.
Our work ahead will continue to be rooted in listening, learning and taking bold actions.
Mental health is a fundamental part of our humanity. We have so much more opportunity ahead, and with each step, we want to ensure that every partner, in every store, feels supported and knows how and where to seek help for themselves and others.