Are companies doing enough for mental health? CEOs and employees disagree
The average worker is half as likely as CEOs to say their companies are accepting of mental health issues.
Most CEOs believe they are doing enough to address mental health issues in the workplace. Many employees, however, disagree.
Ginger, which provides on-demand mental health care, recently completed its “Third Annual Workforce Attitudes Toward Mental Health Report.” Data from nearly 1,300 full-time workers and more than 150 CEOs in the United States found a wide discrepancy. Although 96% of CEOs believe they are doing a good job, only 69% of employees agree.
Related: Infographic: Pandemic’s impact on employee mental health, productivity
Nearly all CEOs surveyed report both investing in their own mental health and increasing their company’s focus on mental health as a result of the pandemic.
- Eight in 10 CEOs believe poor employee mental health negatively affects worker productivity.
- 94% of CEOs report having received mental health support themselves over the past year.
- More than half of CEOs report that talking about mental health makes them a better leader (and nearly 90% of employees appreciate it), even though 56% of them are concerned it might affect their credibility.
- 92% of CEOs report that their companies have increased focus on mental health as a result of the pandemic.
The average worker, however, is much less likely than a CEO to feel their company does enough to support mental health. The more senior the workers, the more likely they are to view their company’s support of mental health positively.
- The average worker is half as likely as CEOs to say their companies are accepting of mental health issues.
- Individual contributors report that their companies offer mental health benefits only half as often as CEOs do.
From skilled workers to CEOs, employees continue to experience high levels of stress and are increasingly relying on technology-based mental health care for help.
- Nearly half of employees report experiencing high to extreme stress over the past year, a 7% increase over the last two years. Yet over the same time period, the number of employees who have used technology-based mental health support has increased by 66%
- More than three-quarters of employees who worked with a mental health professional did so virtually in the past year. Executives (70%), skilled workers (71%) and workers with caregiving responsibilities (57%) are significantly more likely to prefer virtual mental health support.
- 95% of people who received mental health support over the last year report that it helped them at work.
“The increased focus on mental health in the C-suite will benefit both shareholders and workers,” said Russell Glass, CEO of Ginger. “As more people take steps to manage their mental health, CEOs should use this momentum to invest in accessible mental health benefits and to take a leading role in educating employees about the importance of mental health.
“Our data show that this is truly the ‘last-mile’ challenge in mental health care. As we strive to create a world where mental health is never an obstacle, employers have a critical role in destigmatizing mental health and ensuring their teams know how to get help.”
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