If there’s one thing that World Mental Health Day presents, it is opportunity – a chance to finally open up about an issue that most of us, it seems, are just too scared to talk about.
The reality is that we fear the consequences of admitting we have a mental health issue – what will our friends/family think of us? What about our colleagues? Will my employer believe I’m not good enough?
It’s a perception brought to stark light by recent research from QBE. It found that 25% of UK employees are hiding mental health challenges from their employers, while nearly a third would not be comfortable disclosing an issue.
According to the survey, 34% would be concerned about job security, while 25% feel that disclosing an issue could potentially put their career at risk. Indeed, perhaps even more worryingly, 24% said that they would not be confident disclosing an issue to their employer based on how they have seen colleagues with mental ill health treated. Twenty-two per cent (22%) went as far as to say they did not trust that their employer’s concern was genuine.
Given that 29% of UK workers are struggling with mental health it’s an issue that desperately needs to be addressed, believes Adam Shelverton, resilience manager at QBE.
“In this uncertain environment, employees are concerned about job security which may be having a knock-on effect on the way they are addressing their mental health,” he said.
“It is clear from our research that it is not enough for companies to just say the right thing when it comes to mental health, they need to be seen doing the right thing. Businesses lose money when their employees don’t feel safe enough to be honest about their mental health and those workers who are suffering will be watching out for how colleagues in similar circumstances are treated before deciding whether to come forward for help or not. It is encouraging that 30% of workers say they have received good support from their employer but clearly there is much more to be done.”
