UK workers look to employers for mental wellbeing support

Three quarters (73%) of UK office workers believe they need to improve their mental wellbeing and almost half (46%) feel their employer should support them in achieving this according to research from Thomsons Online Benefits.

The findings, published ahead of World Mental Health Day (10^th October), highlight UK workers’ increasing prioritisation of their own mental health, with one in four (26%) now naming mental wellbeing as their number one personal priority.

Over two thirds (69%) of employee respondents would value mental health first aiders in the office and 64% would value access to 24/7 counselling services. These figures rise even higher among 18-24 year olds, to 80% and 69% respectively.

But despite this, mental health first aid is still not provided by 55% of organisations and almost half (48%) don’t provide access to counselling. Furthermore, employers may be contributing to poor mental wellbeing, with employees citing long working hours as the number one factor preventing them from improving this (26%).

Jack Curzon, Consulting Director at Thomsons, comments: “Mental wellbeing is clearly a key priority for UK employees – yet some organisations are still failing to provide comprehensive support in this vital area.

“According to our research, one in ten (12%) UK employees describes their mental wellbeing as poor, 35% believe theirs is just adequate and 45% classify theirs as good. While the level of poor mental wellbeing in the workplace is concerning and must be addressed as a matter of urgency, the findings also highlight significant variation in mental wellness.

“Employers must remember that while their people may be on different mental wellbeing pathways, they all require support. Providing a personalised benefits offering, that enables individual employees to select from a range of options, covering counselling sessions to mindfulness apps, is an effective way of providing this. Having access to these kinds of benefits, and a working culture that is open and supportive around mental health, is not only good for employee wellbeing, but it undoubtedly has a positive impact on productivity and company loyalty too.”