Mental Wellbeing Archives - The Future of Work Exchange

Mental Well-Being Critical to Curbing Employee Burnout

Business Leadership General Insights by John Yuva on 11/20/2023

When we refer to the Future of Work, we’re often talking about a better overall workforce experience. Certainly, a workplace that considers employee purpose, well-being, and work/life balance. In essence, the Future of Work should help prevent one of the leading causes of workforce distress and The Great Resignation — employee burnout. Indeed conducted a survey in 2021 of 1,500 U.S. workers to compare the level of burnout before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey revealed that 67% of all workers believed burnout had worsened during the pandemic. What was the primary reason behind the increase?

Despite most employees working remotely, the survey indicated that more than half (53%) worked more hours virtually than when they were on-site. According to Indeed: Nearly one-third (31%) say they are working “much more” than before the pandemic. On-site workers reported longer hours as well, with 27% who said they worked more daily, and 34% who worked longer on a weekly basis. The inability to unplug from projects, coupled with the lack of guidance surrounding work/life boundaries contributed to longer working hours.

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Employee Burnout Still Simmering in Enterprises

Business Leadership General Insights by John Yuva on 01/05/2023

The State of Burnout in 2023

While the Indeed survey took place in 2021, how is employee burnout faring as we begin navigating 2023? According to a recent report from Aflac “2022-2023 Aflac WorkForces Report,” more than half (59%) of American workers are experiencing at least moderate levels of burnout, a notable increase over 2021 (52%) and on par with the levels reported in 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aflac surveyed 1,200 employers and 2,001 employees. Survey responses indicated the following:

Employees who suffer from high levels of burnout report lower job satisfaction (55%)
Lower confidence that their employers care about them (47%)
Negative perceptions of work-life balance (55%)
A higher likelihood of seeking another job in the next year (56%).

Matthew Owenby, chief human resources officer for Aflac Incorporated, stated, “A major concern of employee burnout is the impact on their well-being and how it affects engagement and retention. Employers are looking for new ways to offer benefits that help improve their employees’ mental health balance,” he said.

Knowing the signs of employee burnout is critical to prevent retention issues. In its “A Manager’s Guide to Preventing Employee Burnout,” Lyra identifies 8 signs of employee burnout that managers and executive leadership should be aware of as they interact with employees.

Exhaustion or feeling overwhelmed
Physical symptoms such as chronic headache or fatigue
Anger or irritability
Distancing themselves from their work
Nervousness or feeling uncertain
Low motivation
Sadness
Difficulty concentrating

Strategies to Extinguish Burnout

When managers witness the above signs in an employee, it is empathy more than anything else that he or she needs. Acknowledging how work can be overwhelming at times and how as a manager those same feelings exist establishes a common ground by which to probe further.

Here are four strategies to bring employee burnout to the forefront in the enterprise and address it with compassion, understanding, and well-being in mind.

Address employee burnout directly. Often, the best way to come to terms with an issue, is to address it head on. During an interview with CNBC, Jennifer Moss, author of “The Burnout Epidemic: The Rise of Chronic Stress and How We Can Fix It,” spent time with CNBC’s Workforce Executive Council.

She views employee burnout as a mental health issue. And one that needs the support of management to promote trust, safety, and prioritization of mental health toward employees. Managers need to dedicate 15 minutes every week with their direct reports to assess how they’re feeling and where their mental pain points exist.

Moss says the following key questions can help managers better understand the mental well-being of their employees and devise solutions to address existing issues.

How was this week?
What were the highs and lows?
What can I do for you next week to make things easier?
What can we do for each other?

Flexible scheduling and time off pay dividends. One of the major workplace outcomes from the pandemic is the concept of flexible scheduling. Many remote workers realized they were more productive during specific hours of the day. Depending on the role, companies enabled employees to choose hours that better reflected availability and higher productivity.

Similarly, time off to rebalance, recharge, and reboot cannot be underestimated. Taking time off, even for a three-day weekend, is crucial to mental health and emotional well-being. However, managers (and even executive leadership) must model these behaviors. Unless a manager actively communicates, encourages, and sets the example for taking time off, employees will remain hesitant to pursue mental health days or PTO.

Work/life balance remains critical. The Indeed survey revealed that approximately “70% of all respondents have access to work communications on their phones — making them 84% more likely to work after hours.” How does this promote work/life balance? Employees are never truly taking PTO or enjoying off hours if they’re always connected to the office. However, some employees, particularly those in management positions, believe the company is unable to function without being tethered to it.

Work/life balance is about establishing priorities outside of work and living life off the corporate grid. Whether it’s taking vacation or going for a 30-minute walk to recharge, employers must encourage and model this Future of Work tenet to curb employee burnout.

Employee perks resonate with workers. What is the benefit of working for an organization? While compensation remains high on the list, it is benefits (including perks) that strike a chord with employees. Access to mental health professionals, days off beyond holidays, casual dress code, flexible scheduling, and other perks are helping with employee balance. The commitment to such perks is often reflected in an enterprise’s overall culture.

A strong enterprise culture with employee success and well-being in mind, will seek feedback to choose perks that appeal to most workers. Organizations should also consider activities (e.g., sports, cultural, community service, etc.) that occur outside of work but bring employees together regardless of business unit.

Regardless of whether your team is remote, hybrid, or permanently on-site, managers should be gauging employee burnout. While difficult to quantify, employee burnout does have detrimental impacts on the bottom line. However, that shouldn’t be the primary focus or reason to monitor workforce well-being. It must be an effort that involves every level of the organization. When communicated and acted upon, mental wellness becomes the responsibility of everyone and is ingrained in the fabric of the culture.

Mental Health Central to Workforce Strategy

Contingent Workforce Diversity and Inclusion HR by John Yuva on 09/01/2022

The topic of mental health in the workplace is one that companies have struggled to address in the past. A stigma around mental health issues has plagued employees from seeking appropriate help. According to a report from Mental Health America (MHA), 2022 Mind the Workplace: Employer Responsibility to Employee Mental Health, “47% of employees know what mental health services they can use when struggling with a mental health concern, but only 38% would be comfortable using their company’s services for a mental health concern.” Fearful of being judged or even losing their jobs, employees chose to suffer in silence. And then a global pandemic occurred.

Suddenly, this unprecedented global event brought mental health out of the shadows and into the mainstream light. The abrupt transition moving to remote work, coupled with the natural stress, fear, and anxiety of living through a pandemic made mental health applicable to nearly everyone. Employees expressed their fears and stress in Zoom sessions with colleagues. And companies realized the importance of supporting employees through these difficult times with employee assistance programs (EAPs) and wellness promotion in corporate communications.

Mental Health Issues are Ever-Present

Now, 2.5 years into the pandemic, COVID-19 is considered a part of our daily existence — unlikely to be fully eradicated. However, this doesn’t mean employees simply accept that reality and life goes on. Quite the contrary. COVID-19 represents only one of the myriad reasons why dialogue around employee mental health must progress and evolve.

We live in a volatile world with inflation, wars, and climate issues that contribute to stress, anxiety, and depression. According to its report, 2022 State of Workforce Mental Health, Lyra states that “84 percent of workers surveyed experienced at least one mental health challenge over the past year, from issues such as stress and burnout to diagnosable conditions including depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and PTSD.” The pandemic served as the catalyst for a wider discussion on mental health in the workplace — one that must continue long term.

Approaching Mental Health Strategically

As companies recalibrate from operating remotely, the workforce must also adjust. There are many remote workers who prefer to remain remote. Companies cannot ignore those preferences. Mental health awareness and support should complement the priority of rebalancing the workforce model.

What can that look like for companies to ensure remote and in-person employee mental health needs are acknowledged and supported? Below are several enterprise approaches identified by Lyra and MHA that bring mental health to the forefront with intent and compassion.

Invest in employee mental health strategically and with purpose. While an EAP program is a suitable start to offering an outlet for employees, it falls well short of strategic investment. Instead, commitment from the highest levels of the organization that mental health is a priority should occur. Training is essential for leadership, human resources, and managers to recognize and address mental health issues with their employees. Not only does training help remove existing stigma, but it also encourages open communication and enables early detection of stress, burnout, and other mental health conditions. Equally important, a training and communication initiative fosters a sense of inclusiveness.
Provide a workplace structure conducive to positive mental health. Working remotely provided flexibility and work/life balance for many employees. As more companies require workers to return to the office, it’s critical to recognize those who thrive in a remote or hybrid structure. Higher productivity and positive mental health are two outcomes that accompany a flexible workforce model.
Encourage an open dialog and feedback for mental health needs and concerns. Company surveys and programs that gauge how the enterprise is following through on its mental health pledge opens honest lines of communication and feedback that only strengthen those efforts. And don’t wait until a high attrition rate occurs before initiating a survey. Commit to a quarterly or bi-annual questionnaire to allow progress for any changes instituted.
Remove barriers to quality mental health care. An employer health plan may include mental health coverage but lack the proper resources and treatment options that a separate mental health plan can provide. An employee survey can help determine if the current health plan is adequate for mental health needs.

Are companies seeing success with these efforts? In an op-ed for the Milken Institute titled, “The Future of Work Depends on Investing in Mental Health,” Christopher Swift, Chairman and CEO for The Hartford, writes, “Within our organization, we have created digital platforms and in-person programs to allow for open dialogues, trained leaders on mental health essentials, and provided guidance on inclusive language to help dispel stigma and lead with empathy,” he says.

“Over the years, we have continually expanded mental health education and evidence-based resources for our employees and their families. In turn, employees have leveraged these benefits, joined in courageous conversations, shared their mental health journey, and expressed appreciation via company communication platforms,” Swift adds.

The positive mental health of our workforce is critical to employee satisfaction, engagement, and productivity — all factors that lead to a healthy bottom line. Make mental health a strategic imperative for your workforce strategy.

The Rules of Wellness Have Changed

Business Leadership HR by Christopher J. Dwyer on 08/01/2022

The Future of Work movement thrives on many accelerants that range from advancements in talent acquisition to innovative tools and technology. However, the realm of humanity, wellness, and culture may be the most critical items in how work continues to evolve.

“Wellness” is often thrown around as a word that reflects healthy corporate “behavior” from the perspective(s) of the workforce (including extended talent), owed to a rise in business leadership’s greater understanding of empathy, inclusivity, and other aspects related to a better workplace. As the story goes, happier employees = more productive (and, hopefully, loyal) workers.

Although the Future of Work Exchange typically discusses how rigidity is the “anti-Future of Work” mindset, something as archaic as a desire for a business’ staff to be productive is absolutely one of those measures that is not bound by time or circumstance. That is, it’s always understandable that an executive remains focused on productivity; without this focus, the enterprise fails.

So why do we need to revisit wellness? Didn’t we just talk about this recently? Well, yes, we did. But that was nearly eight months ago, and, in a pandemic-led, economically-volatile, frenetic labor market-fueled world (both business and personal), the stakes have certainly changed.

A second straight quarter of the U.S. economic shrinking technically means that we’re entering a recession…even though it doesn’t necessarily feel like it. However, many organizations are already taking the steps to prepare for the worst, which means cut to the workforce and the linger specter of layoffs through the remainder of 2022.

And, oh yeah, there’s a still pandemic raging, along with a health emergency for monkeypox. Many, many individuals (as much as 2% or 3% of the total workforce, although that number could be lower or higher) could be suffering from “Long COVID” from past coronavirus infections, with the government still not defining how long-haulers can apply for and receive disability options.

These issues not only mean that wellness in the workplace becomes more important; it also translate into the need to reimagine how business leadership addresses and supports wellness in the wake of an evolving world:

Today’s “new” wellness rules should always, always include engagement and experience in the mix. Wellness is more than an employee or worker being physically healthy and appearing to be mentally fit for their role. Leaders must ensure that they expand how they support both physical and mental wellness during whichever turbulent times may lie ahead; whatever worked even during the worst of the pandemic may already be outdated. In nearly three years of consistent business evolution, the very concept of “wellness” has been transformed to include concepts like employee engagement and the talent experience. The total workforce should be engaged with leadership and their teams and coworkers, grounded in a positive workplace experience, and also feel appreciated, safe, and valued. The next generation of wellness strategies should always include engagement and experience as foundational elements.
Even the most stoic of performers may have something deeper happening in their personal lives; thus, there is no one-size-fits-all model that will “catch” those that require intermediation. Dips in productivity, a lack of communication, and poor collaboration are all markers of a worker suffering from something negative. These individuals are most often pointed to as the main recipients of wellness support; however, there are many workers that put on a happy face, remain incredibly productive, and seem to have it all together. These workers may not need support on the surface, however, there’s usually an undercurrent of burnout bubbling somewhere. Business leaders should arm themselves with the necessary attitude and knowledge in understanding what the warning signs are for employee burnout.
The hybrid workplace requires hybrid leadership…which now requires a more strategic mindset. During the spring and summer of 2020, many business leaders grappled with the complexities of managing a newly-remote workforce in the wake of social distancing, quarantining, etc. Video calls and new modes of leadership were straining, leaving these already-exhausted leaders confounded in how to capture the essence of collaboration without the benefit of in-person operations. Today, the issue has become more severe: onboarding workers can be a nightmare via remote methods, not to mention aspects of reskilling, upskilling, mentoring, etc. Business leaders cannot spend a few hours with a new worker and expect them to function productively while on auto-pilot.
Wellness was the answer all along to a problem that has plagued the business arena for nearly 16 months. Yes, we’re talking about The Great Resignation. Although the numbers dipped in May (4.3 million quits as opposed to 4.4 million the month before), an encouraging trend is emerging: fears of a recession, combined with inflation, may be helping to keep workers put. However, all it takes is a small wiggle upwards and we’re back to the much worse, higher trend. The refrain of “happier workers stay with their companies” could not be more true today. If a professional is engaged, satisfied, and having a positive experience while also working for leaders that are mindful, empathetic, and inclusive, it reflects an ideal recipe for wellness that also bodes well for retention. If workers have a flexible work-life integration, it is a powerful attribute that enables true wellness and wellbeing.

Why the Healthcare Workforce Burnout Issue is a Wake-Up Call for All Businesses

Business Leadership Talent by Christopher J. Dwyer on 01/11/2022

I subscribe to several daily newsletters from various news outlets, including The Atlantic, New York Times, The New Yorker, etc. For the past several weeks, and, in particular, the early days of 2022, there was a commonality in each news roundup: the effects of the Omicron coronavirus variant on hospital staffing and the continued healthcare crunch.

The United States is bracing for a seven-day rolling average of over 700,000 cases, nearly three times that of the worst of the 2020-2021 winter surge. Even though there has been scientific evidence of Omicron orienting itself as a “milder” strain of the coronavirus (mainly by sparing the worst of lower respiratory effects as in other previous variants), the sheer transmissibility of the new mutations heavily outweighs any mildness the virus may bring. Tripling the number of daily cases seen during previous waves means more strain on the healthcare system.

What’s happening with the healthcare workforce is a direct reflection of what happens when the world around us causes severe disruptions in the labor market. Now, I completely understand that hospitals and healthcare facilities are directly on the frontlines, and, as such, will always bear the unfortunate burden of having to face the worst of the pandemic nearly two years into this crisis. The fallout, however, is something that will become commonplace across the globe within many other industries.

Healthcare workers are operating under several challenges, including major burnout, long hours, and, worst of all, mental health issues that could eventually force them to leave the industry altogether. More and more nurses, doctors, and other medical professionals (all of whom have spent many years of their life not just in their roles, but also in the preparatory times preceding their careers in school and training) are expected to leave the industry as the physical and mental toll of the pandemic continues on in 2022.

Imagine spending years of your life dedicated to helping other people, and, after all of the time doing so, on top of the years of schooling required to get there, decide to leave the industry altogether? It’s disheartening on many levels. And it’s something that isn’t just specific to the healthcare industry.

The Future of Work Exchange has written about worker burnout and mental wellbeing in the workplace before; however, with an Omicron surge forcing isolation and quarantine for millions of professionals across the country, those are lucky enough to dodge infection are actively feeling the brunt. In warehouses, where workers are often operating side-by-side, just a small percentage of quarantined individuals means that others have to pick up the slack. In veterinary medicine (which hits close to him, since my wife has been in the field for two decades), a range of veterinarians and veterinary technician staff have to pick up extra hours and scramble for coverage in overnight shifts, weekend hours, etc. Worse yet, many veterinary hospitals have had to defer care when staffing shortages at their worst, meaning that only a sliver of specific emergencies (read: life-or-death instances) are seen during particular blocks of time.

Light industrial will feel the brunt over the next several weeks, as will retail, hospitality, and other industries that cannot work remotely. Omicron’s transmissibility means that millions of Americans will become infected throughout the mid-winter weeks, forcing them into isolation and causing ripply disruptions in productivity. Workers that were already unhappy in their positions will contribute the ongoing “Great Resignation” as they are forced to work more hours in unsafe conditions without the flexibility and benefits they desire.

Longer-term, what is happening within the healthcare workforce will be an omniscient preview of how other industries may come out of an Omicron winter. Why is this such a “wake-up call?” Simply put: the last thing any business leader should desire right now is a loss of talent, be it voluntarily or because of COVID. Extreme burnout isn’t occurring in every industry and certainly not at the scale of the healthcare space, however, the deeper Omicron digs its heels into viable hosts over the next several weeks, the more that non-infected workers have to boost their own productivity under existing mental and physical strain.

We’re already dealing with massive levels of resignation across all sectors. The best-aligned talent is harder to find, and, with literal millions of job openings available, it’s going to become more difficult for businesses to engage well-aligned skillsets and expertise. Even though the healthcare workforce is currently experiencing an extreme form of burnout, it doesn’t mean that the same ramifications won’t be present in other industries. Seeing medical professionals with decades of experience up and leave the profession should cause chills across the greater business spectrum, with a clear message for everyone that actively witnesses the burnout and fatigue on display in the nation’s medical facilities:

This could happen to you and your workforce unless you prioritize the wellbeing of your talent.

Mental Wellbeing’s Critical Role in the Future of Work

Business Leadership by Christopher J. Dwyer on 11/08/2021

Over the past 18 months, empathy and wellness became two of the most critical Future of Work attributes amongst concepts that have (for several years) been accelerating the art of work optimization. Mental wellbeing, however, was often considered an afterthought in pre-pandemic times as many business leaders remained focused on more traditional aspects of the greater organization (as well as the more technology-led aspects of the Future of Work movement).

The truth is that so many of us were historically focused on hardline metrics and benchmarks regarding productivity and how work was addressed and done that many business leaders forgot about the most critical component of all when it comes to the Future of Work: the human element.

While there are many lessons to be learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, ranging from the viability of the hybrid (and remote) work model and the continued impact of agile talent (as well as how crucial digitization is in managing operational enterprise processes), there is one experience that should become a permanent foundation for how business leaders manage moving forward.

Mental wellbeing should be front-and-center in every leader’s plans for 2022…and every year after that. In fact, mental wellbeing within the workforce goes hand-in-hand with the trends towards empathy and empathetic leadership; empathy and wellbeing together, then, form a Future of Work-led convergence of non-technological elements that can truly transform the way workers structure their careers and better manage work-life integration.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) estimates that nearly 44 million people in America experience mental illness on average every year. And, to boot, NAMI also estimates that roughly 75% of all chronic mental illnesses begin by age 24…coincidentally, the age when most adults are at the very beginning of their career journeys.

If we are going to look at the impact of mental wellbeing from an archaic point-of-view, fine, let’s do that (but for only a moment): workers that are suffering from a mental illness are more likely to be disengaged from their work, less productive within the scope of their roles, and more likely to miss key milestones and delivery dates. The more important thing to do, though, is look at this from a human element: workers suffering from mental illness are more likely to have the problem exacerbated by stress from their jobs, more likely to require professional and medical assistance, and, unfortunately, more likely to engage in extreme and self-harmful behavior (such as drug and alcohol abuse, and, unfortunately, suicide).

That’s why viewing mental health at work from purely a productivity standpoint goes against the grain of being more “human” in how we manage the workforce. As the pandemic lingers and the collective trauma weighs on those suffering from mental illness, now is the time to build the business response to this epidemic:

Provide (and communicate the availability of) mental health support through wellbeing resources. Businesses will often state that they have built-in resources for workers to leverage if needed. However, there has been a collective failure on the part of leadership to actually (and consistently) communicate the availability of those resources to their staff. Amongst many lessons learned over the past 18 months, there is a clear need for enterprises to invest in mental resources in order for their workforce to feel supported. Does the business healthcare plan cover tele-therapy? Are psychiatrists and LMHCs part of the overall medical network? Workers require fast and easy answers to these questions.
Eliminate the negative stigma around mental health and related conversations. The very concept of mental health is still unfortunately a taboo topic in both the personal and business arenas. However, it doesn’t have to be, nor should it be. Mental health is just as critical as physical wellbeing; for far too long, many people (both within the personal and business realms) considered mental health to be far less important than physical health, when, in fact, the two are inherently linked. It is encouraging to see public figures, such as Atlanta Falcons star wide receiver Calvin Ridley and tennis hero Naomi Osaka, step away from the globe’s biggest sports to focus on mental health. As mental health and mental illness become destigmatized, there is hope that more and more individuals will speak up when they need to refocus on their own emotional wellbeing without fear of negative feedback from colleagues and managers.
Involve various stakeholders in the architecture of mental wellbeing strategies. It shouldn’t fall solely to the HR group to facilitate the development of workplace wellbeing, especially as it concerns mental health initiatives. While human resources can be responsible for the foundation, other key stakeholders should provide their best perspectives. At its core, a mental wellbeing strategy should revolve around core mental health policies, execution of those policies, and ways that illness can be monitored so the appropriate steps can be taken for intervention and support. The ultimate point is this, however: whatever strategy or program is built, it needs a strong backbone that is supported by various groups across the enterprise. If mental health is to be taken seriously, then business leaders across all functions need to be prepared for issues as they arise and understand that aspects such as risk mitigation are just as critical as worker rehabilitation.
Understand that mental wellness takes many forms, particularly depression, anxiety, burnout, etc. Mental wellbeing isn’t just linked to an imbalance of emotions, but rather a full “tree” of conditions that are all linked to overall mental health. Depression and anxiety may be pre-existing illnesses that are likely to be exacerbated by working conditions, while burnout occurs in even the most stout of workers that may not have historically shown signs of mental illness. “Accommodation” is ultimately the key here; business leaders must understand that mental wellbeing is a critical attribute of the Future of Work, and thus doing what they can to support and accommodate workers as they experience mental illness is a foundational way to ensure that talent can get the help they need and be ready to contribute to the greater organization when they are ready to do so.