Mental health in the workplace

Promoting mental health and the wellbeing of employees is undoubtedly a moral imperative for business leaders, but there is also a mounting body of evidence to support this as a smart financial strategy. PAUL STEPHEN reports

The relationship between mental health and the workplace is a complex one.

But with positive rates of the former so closely linked to attendance, job satisfaction, performance and productivity in the latter, it’s easy to see why enhancing employees’ mental health and wellbeing should be seen as an investment rather than a cost.

One in six workers experiences a mental health problem at any one time, while stress is thought to be responsible for up to half of all working days lost in the UK.

The cost of inaction has therefore been the subject of a number of studies, including a report published by Deloitte in January entitled Mental health and employers: Refreshing the case for investment.

Building on previous research conducted by the company in 2017, Deloitte concludes that poor mental health currently costs UK businesses some £ 45 billion per year. This represents a 16% increase since 2017 and means that employers can now expect an average return of £ 5 for every £1 they spend on tackling the issue.

But despite pointing to the need for decisive action to be taken now, the report also acknowledges the progress that has been made over the past two to three years.

This includes a greater openness to discussing mental health at work, increased staff training, the wider introduction of wellbeing champions, and a mass sign-up to anti-stigma initiatives such as the Time to Change employer pledge.

Meanwhile, separate research published by Deloitte in April 2018 showed that as many as 88% of business and HR leaders in the UK are actively working towards improving employee wellbeing, against a global average of 82%. Some 36% of UK businesses had mental health counselling programmes in place, and three in five offered flexible working. However, only 5% claimed to offer ‘extensive’ wellbeing programmes which are actively tracked to measure their impact on workplace productivity and efficiency.

Despite these advances, Deloitte says that costs arising from poor mental health are moving in the wrong direction, due to changes in working practices that have presented additional challenges.

Rebecca George, Deloitte’s UK public sector leader, explains: “While there are substantial benefits from the increased use of technology in the workplace, an ‘always on’ culture can have a detrimental effect on employee wellbeing.

“This also contributes to ‘presenteeism’, where people work when they are not at their most productive, and the newer trend of ‘leaveism’ where employeers feel they must work outside of their normal hours.”

The report points to young people being the most vulnerable demographic to these two trends, with employers losing an equivalent of 8.3% of the salaries of those aged 18-29.

Some 83% of employees aged 18-24 reported that they always or mostly go into the office when they would have benefited from having

Having the ability to work outside of normal working hours can add to the challenge of maintaining good mental health, and make it hard for some to disconnect from an ‘always-on’ culture. Elizabeth Hampson, Director, Deloitte

time off, due to mental health problems.

This higher rate of ‘presenteeism’ among the younger generations is thought to occur for a number of reasons, including younger people being less likely to disclose mental health problems than their older counterparts.

They are also more likely to be on freelance or short-term contracts, which can contribute to feelings of financial insecurity and therefore a greater tendency for people to attend work even when they are unwell. Those in less secure roles will also have reduced access to employer support and occupational health provision.

Allied to this is the greater prevalence of ‘leaveism’, where employees are unable to disconnect from work because of the increased use of technology.

It occurs when staff utilise allocated timeoff, including annual leave and rest days, to catch up on work obligations and to take work home with them that cannot be completed within normal working hours.

Some 70% of UK businesses which have observed ‘presenteeism’ in their organisation also observed ‘leaveism’, making the two problems firmly interconnected.

Elizabeth Hampson, Deloitte director and co-author of the report, says: “Our research finds that while an increased use of technology can enhance working practices, having the ability to work outside of normal working hours can add to the challenge of maintaining good mental health, and make it hard for some to disconnect from an ‘always-on’ culture.

“The costs of this are significant, for those with poor mental health and for UK employers, and we hope this analysis can help.”

Deloitte estimates the cost of presenteeism to be roughly three and a half times higher for UK employers than absenteeism, which suggests that far more must be done to engender a culture where staff feel better able to take time off when they feel physically or mentally unwell.

More must also be done to promote a better work-life balance and to encourage staff not to work during their allocated time off.

However, responsibility for all this does not just fall on businesses. The report also advocates changes by government to the way disability is defined under the Equality Act, and an increase in the rate of Statutory Sick Pay.

This would increase awareness among those with mental health problems of the rights and protections afforded to them by the law, and hopefully reduce the potential financial penalties they may face when taking time off.

Paul Farmer, chief executive of the MIND charity, adds: “Due to the way disability is defined in the law, many people with mental health problems don’t realise that they have a right to reasonable adjustments if they need them in work.

“Making improvements to the Equality Act and Statutory Sick Pay are key ways in which the Government can increase access to good work and ensure that more people with mental health problems are able to thrive in work.”

The report also identifies greater scope for more investment from businesses in increasing awareness of mental health, tackling stigma, and providing adequate training.

Deloitte says that SMEs in particular have emerged as a lower-visibility but higher-risk category of company where employees could benefit from greater support.

UK businesses should also look to standards such as the Mental Health at Work Commitment, which was developed using the knowledge and expertise of mental health charities and trade organisations before being launched in 2019.

Outlining six standards in areas such as reporting and providing tools and support, making this commitment presents a good way for companies of all sizes to embed best practice into their organisations.

Current signatories to the Mental Health at Work Commitment include some of the largest public and private sector employers in the country - Lloyds Banking Group, Royal Mail, Unilever, Anglian Water, and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.

But in a separate survey of more than 150 senior finance and HR professionals, only one in ten employers had met all of the six suggested core topics. And a little over 15% had made no progress towards any of them.

With rates of adoption so variable, it is incumbent on the business community to act now if they are to avoid further cost rises from poor mental health.

Farmer adds: “Now, more than ever, we need to move from talking to action. With the foundations already set, employers and government have a unique opportunity to make sure that the UK is leading the way globally.”