A new report from Manulife takes a critical look at the collateral effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on employees’ health and wellbeing – and the results are not flattering.
Two years have passed since the pandemic, but Manulife generally found that employees continue to struggle to take care of themselves, even as more businesses turn to the “remote work from home” model. The insurer conducted three surveys in 2021, surveying 56 organizations which totaled 6,141 employees.
The key findings of the report include:
Manulife concluded that the collateral effects of the pandemic have impacted employees’ health for the worse, particularly when it comes to mental health and stress. It noted that 63% of employees had cited mental fatigue as the main reason for not adopting healthy choices – the top reason among survey participants. The top mental health risk factor among the surveyed was work-life balance, and the number one factor affecting employees’ sleep is work-related stress.
The survey also revealed that health-related absences and presenteeism have led to employees losing 41 working days, on average.
But on the brighter side of things, Manulife also found that the organizations that scored highest in healthy workplace culture and wellness initiatives also achieved the best results in key health indicators. In organizations that scored highly, 67% of employees said that their manager demonstrates healthy mental health habits. That figure rises to 77% in the top three organizations surveyed.
