Workplace mental health affects everyone and is a sizeable issue for employers. The benefits are significant for organizations who create an open and proactively supportive culture around mental health, and the cost to those employers who do not is high. Staff absence, presenteeism, leavism and poor retention are among the factors estimated to cost £56bn each year in the UK alone. And overall, poor mental health costs the global economy US$ 1 trillion each year. The scale of the challenge may create inertia for some employers - no doubt compounded by the complexity of the relationship between mental health and the workplace, and the fact that mental health issues are not always obvious, therefore easier to overlook.
What is becoming obvious is an urgency for employers to act. This is reflected in the responses we received to the Pearson Global Learner Survey (GLS), a poll of 5000 people across five countries: 85% of respondents “expect their employers to address mental health and wellbeing” and nearly 80% have “specific and tangible requests to help improve mental health.”
This response is poignant because it comes from our future employees, the individuals in whom we invest, and educate, train and encourage. They are the ones who employers will fail if action isn’t taken. It is worth remembering that the cost of poor mental health is disproportionately high among young professionals and that behind each statistic there is a very human and often devastating experience.
The situation is hopeful. Research suggests there is an increasing interest in mental health by employers. Workplace risk factors for mental health are well known: poor communication, disempowerment, injustice, inflexibility, unclear tasks, unrealistic resourcing, bullying behaviors and lack of compassion. Knowing this, we can all take steps to improve our own wellbeing and better understand mental health.
Research shows that education and training programs can be effective preventative and supportive measures and can raise employee awareness. Some Employee Assistance Programs provide confidential counselling services free of charge for employees and the Mental Health First Aid program has trained over five million people worldwide. There are also a range of charitable and governmental initiatives and pledges that employers can leverage.
Like all wise investments, mental health education pays off. The return on investment is US$1 invested = $US 4 return, which is largely achieved through increased productivity and reduced sick leave, as well as through successful talent recruitment and retention. The latter came through strongly in our results: 90% of responders “think more highly of employers who actively address employee mental health.”
Beyond the obvious economic gains, a mentally healthy workforce will be creative, focused, and effective, and more connected to a business and to each other. Consider your own lived experience of work and what that might look like in an environment where mental health is better supported and respected. What difference would it make for you and those around you at work – and to your family, friends and community?
The Global Learner Survey results may be a call to action for some employers. For others, it will inspire momentum. The data it provides is inspirational. The benefits of action are tangible and the human cost of doing nothing is incalculable. To quote London School of Economics labor economist Richard Layard, “how people feel is their deepest reality,” and acting for mental health in the workplace not only makes good business sense but can fundamentally enrich the experience of work for all employees.
Lisa Wren is the R&P Director, Global Product P&DS Rights & Permissions. She has been researching the relationship between work and mental health for over 15 years. She combines a human approach with a solid academic background, including a BSc in Psychology with Neuroscience. Lisa is a volunteer mentor for young people and established professionals; she teaches workplace wellbeing and mindfulness alongside her role at Pearson.
