Employee mental health slips down in the list of workplace risks
Source: Middle East Insurance Review | Apr 2023
Mental health and workforce exhaustion rank much lower priority-wise in a list of 25 risks ranked by HR and risk managers for a new People Risk Survey by Mercer Marsh Benefits.
According to the survey, HR and risk managers respectively ranked mental health at 18 and 21 place out of 25 risks and workforce exhaustion at 22 out of 25.
The survey analysis was quite stunning considering that these are such pervasive issues, and it seems at odds with intersecting risks that did make it into the top 10, including catastrophic personal life events, changing nature of work and the environment in the recent years.
It appears that many HR and risk teams are thinking of mental health as an issue that they have successfully tackled. However, even though the COVID pandemic is easing, helped by vaccination, the mental health crisis is far from over. Global events such as rampant inflation, the cost-of-living crisis, the Ukraine conflict, geopolitical tension, and climate events will all heighten stress and anxiety in the future.
One in two employees report feeling somewhat stressed every day. During the pandemic, 64% of those with mental health benefits felt supported by their employer versus 44% of those without.
Workplace environments that contribute to stress face reputational damage, high employee turnover and loss of key talent. The longer an individual is unable to work due to mental health illness, the less likely they are to return. M