Wellbeing | 4.3million professionals unhappy at work

According to research conducted by Robert Half, over 4.3million employees (or 13% of the national workforce) are held back by mental health problems such as stress, depression and anxiety.

The UK workforce has the highest rate of unhappiness in the world, with Canada, Australia and Germany trailing. The research found that one in three UK respondents admitted to finding their work stressful, whilst one in 10 report being dissatisfied with their work-life balance.

According to Robert Half, this is having a massive impact on the UK’s labour force. The latest data from the Health and Safety Executive’s Labour Force Survey shows that over 15,000,000 days were lost over a 12-month period due to reported mental health problems caused and worsened by work such as stress and anxiety.

This accounts for over half (57%) of total missed days due to self-reported illness. Additionally, burnout caused by stress and anxiety is responsible for over two fifths (44%) of all reported illnesses in the workplace.