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Change and “change fatigue” were contributing to a spectrum of workplace issues – from extreme stress and burnout – to rising mental health issues even before the impact of COVID-19. Mental and emotional health have moved increasingly into the domain of employer concern over the past decade as technological, business model and economic disruption beleaguer workers. Organizations have recognized that supporting employees’ heath extends beyond physical health and traditional medical benefits. It was less than a year ago that the WHO named burnout [1] a workplace syndrome, which costs $125bn per year. Workforce emotional well-being and behavioral health were already priority challenges [2] prior to the pandemic.
Mental health issues have an economic cost to employers in missed days, presenteeism, turnover and treatment costs. In another 2019 study from the World Health Organization [3], it was estimated that depression and anxiety disorders cost the global economy US$1tn in lost productivity annually. Additionally, mental health issues have negative impacts on sleep (which adds to productivity loss and can cause serious safety issues in some jobs) and physical health problems. Employers are typically not able to understand the scope of these problems because they remain hidden unless they hit claims.
Organizations were already taking note and seeking to find ways to respond to the uptrend in stress and mental health problems. Willis Towers Watson’s 2020 benchmark study [4] found that 73% of responding organizations plan to integrate well-being into their employee value proposition in 2020, an increase of 25% over 2019, and 76% plan to align their well-being strategies to corporate culture, an increase of 13% compared with 2019.
While identifying mental and behavioral health issues had become a top priority for some employers, meQuilibrium believed there was a need for more clarity as to how the HR professionals were viewing the urgency of the situation, the key stakeholders in their organizations, the effectiveness of their current solutions and what new approaches to employee mental health they were considering.
To gain this additional insight and data, meQuilibrium partnered with Employer Health Innovation Roundtable (EHIR) to hold a series of four workshops and focus groups in the Fall of 2019 with 37 participating EHIR members representing large employers. We also gathered data through a short survey instrument. The...