Businesses Need to Adjust Their Perspective on Employee Mental Well-being
America is grappling with a significant mental health predicament. Companies play a crucial role in helping alleviate this issue. Startling statistics reveal that over 20% of American adults (approximately 59.3 million individuals in 2022) suffer from mental illnesses. A 2024 study showed that 65% of adults have faced concerns about their mental health or that of their loved ones, an increase of 15 percentage points compared to 2020. The Surgeon General has issued a warning about an outbreak of loneliness and isolation, putting Americans at a higher risk of numerous severe health issues, such as anxiety, depression, stroke, cardiovascular disease, dementia, and even premature death.
Adolescents and young people are particularly susceptible to mental health challenges. Suicide accounts for one death every 11 minutes and is the second leading cause of death among individuals aged 10 to 14. Mental illness can have dire consequences for anyone, particularly vulnerable individuals due to their disabilities, income status, or racial background, among other factors. Many disabled veterans also deal with psychological well-being issues.
Although mental health is a deeply personal matter, it is also a concern that business leaders need to comprehend better and proactively address. Fortunately, investing in employee well-being will boost the company's health as well.
Mental health challenges in the workplace can result in burnout, excessive fatigue, high turnover rates, and missed deadlines or objectives, leading to an unmotivated workforce. If employees experience anxiety, burnout, or disengagement, it can cause costly mistakes and complicate creative tasks for a business.
Employers play a significant role in shaping their employees' mental health. More than 70% of people assert that their manager has a more meaningful impact on their mental health than their therapist or doctor. Spending a significant portion of our waking hours with colleagues explains this, making sense of the significant impact that managers have on employees' mental well-being.
To tackle this crisis and ensure the well-being of employees, organizations can consider the following measures:
Take proactive steps.
Prevention is crucial when addressing mental health issues. The Surgeon General stated that the antidote to the loneliness epidemic is to build more interconnected lives and a more interconnected society.
Our organization addressed this call by focusing on strengthening social connections among isolated groups. By connecting them with pro-social activities that provide protection against loneliness and related conditions, such as anxiety and depression, we served a broad range of populations, including people of various ages and disabilities, from esports gaming clubs and summer camps to employment training and adult day services.
Employers can also take steps to reduce workplace-related anxiety. Workplace policies like flexible working arrangements, open communication, and promoting a supportive workplace culture will reduce unnecessary stress.
Prioritize the well-being of your team.
Identifying mental health concerns is the first step towards addressing them. Companies can take various measures to help their staff identify and navigate potential mental health concerns, such as investing in workplace mental health training for managers and conducting workforce pulse surveys to enable company leaders to hear directly from their staff about major common stressors.
Our organization supports employee well-being by offering a free and anonymous national mental health online screening tool (in collaboration with Mental Health America), allowing individuals to determine if they or someone they care about is experiencing symptoms of common mental health conditions. After completing the brief screening, participants receive links to national resources, such as the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, and can connect to our national toll-free call center to access local resources and behavioral health services.
Be a source of support.
In addition to collaborating with organizations like ours, businesses can take specific actions to ensure that their employees receive the support they need. For example, offering mental health benefits as part of employee benefits packages will make mental health treatments more accessible to those who require it. Clearly communicating these benefits during the onboarding process will help all employees understand their coverage. Encouraging a safe and open workplace environment where mental health discussions can take place with managers or HR representatives will help reduce the stigma of taking time off or using employer-provided benefits.
Mental health affects every aspect of our lives and is an issue that has gained significant attention lately. Through simple initiatives, business leaders can meet the Surgeon General's call to action while also strengthening their companies. It is a mutually beneficial solution.
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Kendra Davenport, as a nonprofit CEO, is a member of our Website Nonprofit Council, an exclusive organization for successful nonprofit leaders. By focusing on the mental health of their employees, businesses like those led by Kendra Davenport can both combat the mental health crisis and improve their own operations.
