Wellbeing | Work sparks mental health issues for 2 in 5 UK employees

Two in five (39%) of UK employees have cited work as a root cause for experiencing mental health issues, new research has revealed.

The report – released by Business in the Community (BITC), in partnership with Mercer Marsh Benefits and BITC’s Wellbeing Leadership team – found that a third of workers (33%) attributed work-related mental health issues to negative colleague relationships, while 24% said that the issues arose as a result of harassment or bullying from a manager.

Louise Aston, Wellbeing Campaign Director at BITC, said: “While mental health awareness has risen significantly in recent years, our research shows that too many employers are tinkering at the edges of change rather than making the fundamental differences that are really needed to improve their employees’ mental health.”

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Furthermore, the research found that six in ten (62%) managers prioritise the company’s interests above staff wellbeing. But this is not the only barrier that workers are faced with. A severe disconnect between the Board’s perceptions of how mental health is treated and what the rest of the company thinks was also cited in the study.