Orange County Earns Silver-level Bell Seal for Workplace Mental Health By: Orange County Communications Department
Orange County is proud to have been recognized as a 2025 Bell Seal for Workplace Mental Health recipient by Mental Health America (MHA). MHA advances the mental health and well-being of all people living in the U.S. through public education, research, advocacy and public policy, and direct services. Their evaluation grades an employer in four categories: Workplace Culture, Benefits that Support Mental Health, Caring Beyond Compliance, and Holistic Wellness at Work. Only two in five employers meet the Bell Seal standards. According to MHA, “recognition at any level—Bronze, Silver, Gold, or Platinum—means [the recipient] organization prioritizes its employees’ mental health and well-being and aligns [its] policies, practices, and benefits with topline industry best practices accordingly.”
According to the MHA evaluation, Orange County scored above the average employer in all disciplines, with particularly high scores in the Holistic Wellness at Work (100%) and Benefits that Support Mental Health (86%) categories. Not content to sit with this level of success, Orange County’s Wellness Program plans to use this recognition as motivation to continue to reach even higher in the future, particularly in the “Caring Beyond Compliance” sphere. Things like the recent Employee Wellness Expos, Employee Appreciation events, and Mental Health First Aid training offered at no cost to employees are just the beginning! Interested in supporting this important work? Those who are already employees should speak with Human Resources about joining the Cultural Initiative Team. Spots are available and all staff are encouraged to get involved. Over the past several years, Orange County has made significant strides to improve the very areas identified by MHA. Specifically, the Wellness Program itself was born of the Cultural Initiative work that began several years ago. Holistic and wide-ranging, various programs have been carefully considered and intentionally created with the knowledge that a happy and well-supported employee in turn provides higher quality services to Orange County and its residents. Examples include our enhanced benefits package that rewards employees for being proactive with their preventative care and the Lifestyle Spending Account (LSA) that empowers employees to find wellness supports that work best for them on an individual level. It can’t go without mentioning that both the Rewards and LSA programs have also contributed to decreased overall healthcare costs for the County, truly a win-win!
Interested in joining the Orange County team? Check out page 29 for a list of current open positions, and visit www.orangecountyva.gov/jobs for a regularly-updated listing.
Wellness Expo events have been held in partnership with Orange County Public Schools. These events connect employees to benefits, resources, and fun!
Participants attend a Mental Health First Aid Class offered by Orange County Human Resources and Orange County Public Schools.
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