The State of Employee Mental Health & Well-Being
A dose of dark humor may have helped many of us cope with the last two years, according to new research by the American Psychological Association.1 But funny memes can only go so far. As we enter the third year of pandemic living, employee mental health and well-being is struggling.
Realizing the importance of workplace well-being, employers are paying attention: 86 percent say employee mental health, stress and burnout are still a priority.2 Yet just half of employers have no strategy for workplace well-being, leaving them at the risk of being unprepared to meet the needs of their most important asset—their people.
It’s also essential to consider how to stand out in a tight talent market, when competition for candidates is fierce. Employers are increasingly looking at programs to support workplace well-being as differentiators to recruit, retain and incentivize their people.
How can employers evaluate their benefits, and enhance them to support workplace well-being?
Enhancing access to mental health care
Over the last two years, employee mental health has suffered. And the recent Omicron wave added to the strain. In fact, according to the most recent Mental Health Index,3 depression is up 87 percent compared to fall 2021, and PTSD and addiction rates are also on the rise.
Employers should consider the mental health benefits offered under their current primary health insurance plans and employee assistance programs (EAP). Many of these traditional benefits have coverage voids that affect affordability for effective mental health care and support. Employers can close them with innovative benefits, like supplemental health insurance plans, that enhance access to care and reduce the financial strain of out-of-pocket healthcare costs.
Caring for the whole employee
Mental health is important, but it’s not the only aspect of workplace well-being. A whole-employee approach to well-being includes care and support for physical, mental, emotional, financial and social health. This is where enhancing benefits can help employers prioritize workplace well-being.
Doing so is not only the right thing; it also makes good business sense. Employees suffering from stress and burnout are three times more likely to leave,4 threatening continuity and productivity for employers in a tight talent market.
Employers ready to prioritize workplace well-being can consider innovative benefits like WellPak by ArmadaCare. It’s an all-in-one health insurance solution designed to layer over any primary healthcare plan to boost employee mental health and well-being with coverage and access for coaching, counseling and more. With the ideal blend of coverage and support, WellPak makes accessing and affording behavioral health treatments easier for employees.
Learn more about WellPak by ArmadaCare.
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1 American Psychological Association, 2021
2 WTW, Wellbeing Diagnostic Survey, 2021
3 NAMI, 2022
4 Gallup, 2018