Workplace Mental Health Statistics for May Is Mental Health Awareness Month #7
May10th — Statistic #7
From Lyra’s 2022 State of Workforce Mental Health Survey Report:
- The vast majority of benefits leaders — 92% — reported that providing mental health support for their people became a higher priority for the company in 2021.
- The benefit leaders — 93% — reported that they expect the support levels they provide to stay high over the next three years.
My Thoughts and Comments:
With all the attention employee mental health has been getting in the recent past and is increasingly getting today, I would expect the percentage to be high. But what we don’t know is what employers mean when they say support for employee mental health.
Like most people, most employers probably view mental health as only being about mental ill- health, mental disorders, or mental illnesses. But many definitions of mental health define it as being more than just the absence of mental illness.
This means that the typical employer who is focused only on mental ill-health is not doing an adequate enough job. A focus only on mental ill-health is a focus only on approximately 20% of the employee population, thus ignoring 80% of the employees.
Ignoring the 80% is not wise as we know that 100% of employees experience some level of mental health (aka mental wellness, mental wellbeing, or positive mental health) ranging from languishing to flourishing. Since mental health is separate from mental illness, employers need to expand their focus and efforts to include mental wellness rather than simply focusing only on mental illness.
Here is the link to yesterday’s statistic #6: https://williammcpeck.medium.com/workplace-mental-health-statistics-for-may-is-mental-health-awareness-month-6-d814fb7360d5
