Mental Health in the Workplace: The Cost to Business
The UK cost of mental ill health in the workplace each year is
£29 billion Presenteeism £7 billion sickness absence £8.6 billion staff turnover
Mental health and employers: Refreshing the case for investment – Deloitte – January 2020
Presenteeism costs UK business each year £29 billion
Poor mental health costs UK employers up to £45bn a year, with presenteeism taking the biggest toll.
A report from Deloitte and mental health charity Mind estimated that presenteeism – defined by the research as staff turning up to work despite being unwell for mental health reasons – cost UK employers between £26bn and £29bn annually through lost productivity.
This was around four times the cost associated with absences owing to mental ill-health, and about three times that associated with mental health-related staff turnover, estimated at £6.8bn and £8.6bn respectively.
British businesses lost an average of 38 working days per employee to physical and mental health related absence and presenteeism in 2019 – added to the start of this year, that makes today, February 21st, the UK’s ‘first productive day'
Vitality’s annual Britain’s Healthiest Workplace study -2020
Sickness absence
The costs UK business each year £7 billion
Stress, depression or anxiety accounted for 44% of all work related mental ill health
15.8 millions days of sickness absence caused by mental health issues each year
48% of people said they would be embarrassed when asking for a mental health sick day
Centre of Mental Health at Work
Staff Turnover
The costs UK business each year £8.6 billion
Minimising the risk of losing valued employees is another reason to invest in mental health at work.
Almost 25% of people have left their job due to mental health issues.
31% of staff said that they would consider leaving their current role within the next 12 months if stress levels in their organisation did not improve.
Mental health at work: How staff feel
Nearly two thirds of employees say they’d feel more motivated if their employer took action to support mental health and wellbeing.
85% of managers acknowledge that employee wellbeing is their responsibility but only 30% of line managers report that they have received any training
61%
of employees have experienced mental health issues due to work or where work was a related factor
64%
of managers have had to put the interests of their organisation above staff wellbeing at some point
11%
of respondents who disclosed a mental health issue subsequently faced disciplinary action, demotion or dismissal
16%
of employees felt able to disclose a mental health issue to their manager
Mental Health at Work 2018 Report – Seizing the Momentum
''On average, for every £1 spent on supporting their people’s mental health, employers get £5 back on their investment in reduced presenteeism, absenteeism and staff turnover''
Mental health and employers: Refreshing the case for investment – Deloitte – January 2020
Training for your organisation
We can deliver all our mental health courses and bespoke training to your team in a venue of your choice, or online as a group. We can arrange a package of training places on our public courses. Book booking is an effective and economical way to quickly upskill your workforce.