Mental health to receive greater backing from the Board and senior managers as a result of COVID-19

The majority (88%) of reward professionals believe employee mental health will receive greater backing from their Board and senior managers as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

REBA’s research into COVID-19 and employee mental health, supported by Unmind, found that conversations around mental health have skyrocketed in organisations since the outbreak of coronavirus.

Around 88% of respondents report an increase in mental health discussions at senior management level, while the picture among Board members is similar, with 80% reporting an increase in these conversations.

REBA’s director Debi O’Donovan, believes that although attitudes towards mental health in the workplace have been changing steadily over the past decade, the coronavirus pandemic has accelerated this change.

“As more people, especially in senior leadership teams, speak openly about the impacts of the pandemic on wellbeing, it is great to see a shift among Board directors towards actioning change,” she says.

The survey showed that nearly all employers are expecting the current crisis to have a negative impact on the mental health of their employees. Just over half of respondents believe employees’ mental health will have a knock-on negative impact on the success of their businesses – but a sizeable minority (45%) do not think the impact on employees will translate into weaker company performance.

Overall, as a result of coronavirus, 71% of respondents are planning to increase how much they spend on supporting employee mental health over the next 12 months.

“As the report demonstrates, organisations are aware of the impact that COVID-19 will have after the lockdown ends. The increase in conversations by senior management and Board members about mental health is particularly notable in the survey results. It is important that we invest now and adopt a proactive approach to prevent problems arising and ensure we are supporting our employees as much as possible throughout a period that will continue to be strenuous on their mental health,” adds O’Donovan.

Other key findings from the survey include:

over three-quarters of businesses have seen an increase in requests for mental health support in the wake of COVID-19
more than 90% of businesses have increased their emphasis on the importance of employee mental health as a result of the pandemic
over 85% believe the virus has or will negatively impact their employees’ mental health
less than 2% of businesses have seen a decrease in requests for mental health support
less than 2% of businesses think the pandemic will not have an impact on employee mental health.

Dr Nick Taylor, CEO and co-founder of Unmind and clinical psychologist, adds: “In order to future-proof our organisations against a second wave of challenges through employee mental ill-health after lockdown, we must take positive action now. That’s why it’s so important that businesses respond to this shift and use it as an opportunity to propel their mental health strategies forward to meet the needs and expectations of their people.”

The report surveyed 151 British companies from across the private, public and not-for-profit sectors. This included organisations such as BT, Centrica, Shell International, John Lewis & Partners, Marks and Spencer and TSB. Of the companies surveyed, 73% had over 500 employees. In total, the businesses that responded to the survey represent more than half a million employees.

Read the full research findings.

The author is Dawn Lewis, content editor at REBA.