Mental health in the new world of work

There is much to ponder this World Mental Health Day. The last 18 months have brought to the fore the prevalence of poor mental health in our communities and places of work, including amongst working women, millennials and Gen Zs.

But, despite our collective awareness and the urgency around tackling this ‘other pandemic’ picking up pace, it is becoming clear that many people are still choosing not to raise mental health issues at work. Deloitte's 2021 Millennial and Gen Z survey - released over a year into the COVID-19 pandemic - found that nearly half of millennials (49%) and Gen Zs (48%) report feeling more stressed since the onset of COVID-19. Yet a staggering 58% of these respondents had not spoken to their employers about their increased stress or anxiety, with nearly half of those who had to take time off work due to stress giving their employer a different reason for their absence. This is strikingly similar to our 2020 results.

Considering the growing recognition of the importance of mental wellbeing, and many organizations talking more about mental health, why are so many people still holding back? Why is stigma around mental health still so widespread after such a prolonged period of sharing so much of our lives with colleagues as the lines between work and home blurred? And most importantly, what can we do, as colleagues and people leaders, to remove this stigma for good, as we enter a ‘new normal’ of remote and hybrid working?

It’s probably too early in this ‘new normal’ to be able to fully understand how we can address mental health at work against a backdrop of these new ways of working. But we can, and must, openly discuss how the rapid changes in the world of work may affect our mental wellbeing as we move forward - and how we can identify, destigmatize and tackle issues. We must also understand why, after many months of increased awareness and talk of the importance of mental health, stigma still remains a challenge in the workplace.

There may be various factors shaping people’s decision not to open up about their mental health at work. Some are the product of long-standing societal and cultural issues, while others may come from more current perceptions and attitudes. People hearing from colleagues or friends that they are choosing not to share their mental health challenges with work at this time and therefore following suit. Or it could be the overwhelming sense that ‘everyone is struggling’, leading people to minimize - and not disclose - their own struggles.

Whatever the reason for this lack of disclosure, we now need to carefully look at the challenges that may present themselves when it comes to our new ways of working. Working online can not only make it harder for people to make the first step and initiate a personal conversation, but it can also create new stressors - some of which we may not feel comfortable bringing up with our employers, given the flexibility they have shown.  

For example, while being given more freedom to choose where and when to work is helpful for many, the loss of structure and boundaries can be a cause of stress for some. Remote and hybrid arrangements can lead to a ‘fear of exclusion’- of missing out on important in-person meetings, ‘watercooler’ moments and on the connections that face-to-face interactions can uniquely build.

Some may also worry that their personal choices around ways of working may adversely impact both how they are regarded in the short term, and their career progression in the longer run. We know many people already had similar concerns before the pandemic, with flexible ways of working offered by employers frequently seen as career limiting[1].  

And underlying all this is the fact that many of us had to ‘press on’ for 18 long months – dealing with draining daily schedules of video calls on the one hand, while worrying about our career paths becoming less defined and our working relationships with others feeling less secure, on the other.

While these factors may be creating new sources of stress, remote working can also make it harder for leaders to ‘read’ their people and spot the early signs of mental health issues, which are often non-verbal. Considering how crucial early disclosure and support are in promoting mental wellbeing, this ‘human distancing’ impact is something leaders need to think more about. And hybrid ways of working are likely to bring new complexity in how leaders can continue to lead their people inclusively, fairly and openly, as workers within their teams opt for different work patterns and locations.

Of course, we do not yet have a full picture of how the changes in the workplace imposed by the pandemic are affecting mental wellbeing. But data relating to the last year and a half[2][3] – when, despite more discussion that ever, stigma remained - suggests that these issues really do need our attention.

As leaders we need to each ask ourselves some critical questions - how do we lead with empathy and provide the support and reassurance people need, as early as they need it, in a world with reduced and uneven face-to-face contact? How do we enable everyone to continue to feel included? 

As always, a large part of the answer lies in how we lead. Taking the time to understand our team members’ concerns as we enter these new ways of working, learning to really listen, and enabling them to openly discuss these with us without feeling judged. And not being afraid to share our own challenges and experiences and the solutions that worked for us.

While none of us have all the answers, we can all lead with empathy and respect.

[1] https://timewise.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Manifesto-for-change.pdf

[2] https://www2.deloitte.com/global/en/pages/about-deloitte/articles/millennials-gen-z-and-mental-health.html

[3] https://www2.deloitte.com/global/en/pages/about-deloitte/articles/women-at-work-global-outlook.html