Over the past decade or so, a robust workplace mental health policy has shifted decidedly from a nice to have, to a must have for all businesses. This is not purely a product of the social values of the day dictating the way we work, but a sign that increased understanding of mental health has made this a simple business decision. We now know that the lack of an effective mental health provision costs businesses billions.
Mismanaging the mental health provisions available in the workplace doesn’t just affect the wellbeing of employees, it has significant financial and productivity repercussions for organisations. It is estimated the economic costs of mental ill health equates to an eye-watering £110bn a year. This includes the costs to businesses of sickness absence, presenteeism and staff turnover.
The Cost of Absence
It is estimated that in the UK every year, 18 million days of work are lost due to poor mental health. During absences due to mental health, like any other kind of illness, companies incur costs related to paying for overtime for other employees who have to cover the absent workers’ duties and the potential costs of temporary staffing. Additionally, the frequent absence of skilled employees can disrupt workflow and project timelines, further impacting the bottom line. If mental ill health related absences are just as costly as any other, shouldn’t the workplace be treating it with just as much seriousness and understanding as a physical illness?
Presenteeism: The Hidden Productivity Killer
While an employee being off sick has a visible and more directly measurable impact, presenteeism – when employees are physically at work but mentally unwell or struggling – is a more insidious and, in some ways, equally costly issue. Employees experiencing mental health challenges may struggle to concentrate, make more mistakes, and exhibit lower productivity levels. Some studies have even put this figure at a reduction of around a third, that’s not far off two days in every working week lost to poor productivity.
Turnover and Recruitment Costs
Neglecting mental health in the workplace also contributes to higher employee turnover. Employees who feel unsupported are more likely to leave, seeking workplaces with better mental health policies. The cost of employee turnover is significant – it includes recruitment, training, and the lost productivity during the transition period. According to research by Oxford Economics, replacing an employee on a salary of more than £25,000 can cost over £30,000. For high-level positions, the cost can be even higher. It is also obvious that gaps between an employee leaving, and onboarding a replacement, can have a greater financial and productivity impact than this.
The Moral Imperative and Employee Engagement
Beyond the financial implications, there is a moral imperative for organisations to support their employees’ mental health. Creating a supportive environment fosters employee loyalty, enhances engagement, and builds a positive workplace culture. Engaged employees are more productive, innovative, and committed to the company’s success. Gallup’s research shows that companies with high employee engagement have 21% higher profitability.
By now, the costs of getting mental health in the workplace wrong should be apparent, but the question remains, what can you do to ensure you are getting it right? There is no easy fix and many of the conversations needed to implement change will not be easy to have, however, they certainly should not be shied away from.
Getting it right
The first thing to address is almost always to create and develop a formal mental health policy. These can be explicitly designed to support employees struggling with mental conditions to remain in work – or return to it.
No policy will be perfect, and people struggling with mental health can often react unexpectedly, but having some guidelines to refer to, can still be helpful. It is also important to note that while managers have an important role to play, they are not professionals, so businesses may want to consider bringing in mental healthcare services. This can provide everything from good training for managers to actual therapy directly to employees.
By providing clinically led mental health training, managers and business leaders will be better equipped to have the often difficult, but necessary conversations with employees. These should not be concerned with any sort of diagnosis but rather should be focussed on what can be done to support the employee’s mental well-being at work.
The other aspect that is often neglected when carving out new policies and ways of working such as this is the need for change at every level. Especially at the top. Business leaders have a responsibility to ensure that they champion and endorse these new policies as well as encourage an environment of openness and discussion around these topics. No employee is going to feel empowered to open up about their potential struggles if their boss is not taking it seriously.
Finally, every employee is different. Managers need to be able to act flexibly in providing support. This includes, but is certainly not limited to, adjusting hours, workload, breaks, or perhaps providing an employee with a mentor.
At the end of all of this, it is clear that there is no one solution, but taking workplace mental health seriously and working toward fixing it, is not only the right thing to do, but also could save your business serious time and money.
Sarah Carter
Sarah Carter is Head of Account Management at Onebright and leads on the management of clinical governance and auditing of mental healthcare services provided to business clients. She also has a key role in service innovation, research and business growth, as well as making sure every business client receives the best service.
