New 24/7 mental health support programs – however and whenever employees need it

Chances are, your grandparents never took a mental health day. Your parents most likely didn’t, either. Previous generations often took a more skeptical approach toward the importance of mental health and viewed seeking treatment as a personal or moral failure instead of a health issue. They pushed through rather than admit to needing a day to heal mentally.

Those prevailing attitudes, however, have changed in recent years. Rather than being ashamed of needing support (never mind admitting it at work), two-thirds of workers say that they want their employer to help them take care of their stresses and anxieties, according to a recent survey by the wellness app, Calm. Luckily, that same survey also found that most employers – nearly nine in 10 – want to do just that, stating that strengthening mental health benefits was a top priority.

In April 2023, the TELUS Mental Health Index found that three in five U.S. workers were at moderate or high risk of developing a mental health condition such as anxiety, depression or addiction. These risks are exacerbated by a significant shortage of mental health providers in the U.S., with more than 100 million people living in areas the federal government has identified as lacking mental health professionals.

While the ultimate responsibility to seek care remains with the individual, more employers are taking steps beyond increasing physical and mental health care benefits to support the total wellbeing of their workforce. This article provides a snapshot of what that support can look like.

Support for contributing factors

Modern life is rife with stressors. Debt, divorce, legal problems, physical ailments and social isolation to name a few. Each of these independently can lead to stress, anxiety and depression, but the fact is that many of us deal with more than one of these issues concurrently at some point in our lives. More employers are recognizing this and providing non-traditional support that can lead to better mental wellbeing on the job.

Research indicates how different areas of health – physical, mental and financial –

are interconnected. The Index also showed that the mental health risk of those who reported a decline in their physical health, or who have a significant physical health challenge, is 35+ points higher than those reporting good physical health. Strong ties between poor sleep and a lack of exercise and higher mental health risk scores were also evident.

For years, Employee Assistance Programs, better known as EAPs, have provided referrals to a set number of consultations with mental health professionals. Today, with a greater acceptance of telemedicine, these programs increasingly recommend online counseling and treatment options. Some even offer tools such as self-directed online cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), a common type of talk therapy that helps people learn how to identify and change inaccurate or negative thinking patterns so they can view challenges more clearly and respond more effectively.

For stressors unrelated to physical or mental health, many employers have started widening their EAP plans with programs to provide debt counseling and financial planning to address non-medical sources of stress that may impact an employee’s wellbeing.

Studies have shown that employees who have participated in EAP provided through their benefits plan or can experience greatly reduced absenteeism and presenteeism, despite reporting the same levels of stress. In addition to these productivity gains, employers can also benefit from reduced health care costs, lower employee turnover and unplanned leaves of absence as a result of EAP participation.

But EAPs are not the only answer in responding to the country’s workplace mental health crisis.

New programs, such as Total Mental Health which we recently launched, are looking to take a step further providing employees with mental health supports however and whenever they need it with 24/7- in person, virtual, self-directed formats, along with care navigators to help them in their ever-evolving mental health journey. Many other services are following suit giving companies a greater ability to support the mental health needs of their staff.

Workplace accommodations

Employers can establish policies, processes and accommodations to mitigate sources of stress in the workplace and increase awareness of the signs of stress. Some of the most common policies include:

• Comprehensive safety programs. Implementing a comprehensive workplace health and safety (CWHS) program recognizes and protects psychological health in the workplace. These programs can include measures such as normalizing and supporting mental health, enabling adequate rest and time off and operationalizing DEI norms and policies.
• Flexible work schedules. Allowing employees to have more control over where and when they work can help them better balance their personal and professional responsibilities, such as shifting start and end times to accommodate childcare responsibilities or the ability to work from home to take an elderly relative to a medical appointment.
• Manager awareness training. Mental Health Awareness Training (MHAT) has been shown to improve management’s attitudes about mental health and their willingness to promote mental health at work, such as by encouraging employees to take breaks throughout the day. Just knowing that it is OK to take a 10-minute walk for some fresh air sometimes is enough to reduce an employee’s stress level.
• Zero tolerance policies. Today, most employers have established zero-tolerance policies toward workplace violence and harassment that cover all employees, contractors, clients, customers, visitors, partners and anyone else who might come in contact with company personnel. For those that don’t, the first step is to assess the current state of the workplace and identify any formal or informal policies that already exist and strengthen them – in writing.
• Enforce protection laws. Employees with diagnosed depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or other mental health conditions are protected against discrimination and harassment at work because of their condition. They have a right to privacy in the workplace and may have the right to get reasonable accommodations that can help them perform and excel at their job.

Related: Why one-size-fits-all mental health solutions aren’t working

Any new policy or procedure will be best adopted and accepted when it is developed in consultation with representatives from at-large employees, as well as the appropriate HR, operations, security and other stakeholders. And for any tools or services provided through a workplace benefits plan, it’s important that employers engage and inform their staff on their availability, but also educate them on how to access and use them. This can go a long way in increasing usage and broader engagement with these health and wellbeing supports.

Employers have a responsibility to recognize and protect the mental health of their employees. This can be achieved onsite through the implementation of policies and processes that promote a healthy work-life balance, reduce workplace stress and prevent violence and harassment. Providing help for non-work-related stressors through an EAP, and other mental health services in a benefits plan, acknowledges the whole of the employee’s living situation, only part of which is on the job.

There are opportunities now for companies to step up and help their people while helping stem the tide of mental health issues in the workplace across the country. There is both a human and business case to be made.

 Neil King is Managing Director, Employer Solutions at TELUS Health.