MENTAL HEALTH AND FINANCIAL HEALTH GO HAND IN HAND AT WORK
What do Delta Airlines, CitiBank, Patagonia and Salesforce all have in common? They are all companies implementing policies to help their employees’ mental and financial health.
Mental health and financial health go hand in hand. A 2024 report from the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America (TIAA) and High Lantern Group looked at how the two impact each other, and how employers can better support their employees.
It might seem simple on the surface; financial stress like high debt can significantly contribute to mental-health struggles. Additionally, poor mental health can lead to lower productivity and performance at the workplace. It creates a toxic cycle that makes it difficult for both financial and mental health to recover. According to the report, financial stress has resulted in a 34% rise in absenteeism and tardiness. Constant lateness can make it more difficult to get a raise or promotion to ease financial burdens. Employers need to be aware of what they can do to aid their employees’ battles on both fronts.
“We live in a world in which greater numbers of people are increasingly struggling to create financial health. And one of the biggest drivers of mental health is a person’s sense of financial stability,” Tara Giuliano, the Chief Marketing Officer of Nuveen, said in the report.
Anxiety and depression, the two most common mental health conditions, cause the global economy to lose an estimated 12 billion working days every year, which leads to a $1 trillion loss in productivity a year, according to the TIAA report. Employees who are stressed about their finances are five times more likely to be distracted by their personal finances at work.
While the stigma surrounding mental health remains, the World Health Organization (WHO) says it’s a much bigger issue than people realize, and declining mentalhealth is a “growing crisis.” According to WHO, 12% of the global population lives with a mental-health condition. In high-income countries, that number increases to 15%. Of the adults who have been diagnosed with a mental-health condition, less than half received mental-health services in 2021. The younger generations are hit harder by this, according to the TIAA report, 81% of Gen Z survey respondents say they have left their roles because of mental health reasons, along with 68% of millennials.
A 2023 study from the American Psychologists Association found that 77% of workers reported dealing with work-related stress in the past month. This suggests that far more people could benefit from having some mental-health support or tools in the workplace than just those with diagnosed mental-health struggles.
But when these conversations happen in the workplace, they are not always productive. Sixty-six percent of survey participants said they have discussed their mental health at work in the past year, but only 49% said those interactions were positive.
According to the TIAA report, when employers implement mental-health care, not only are they helping those who are already struggling, but it will act as preventative care for others.
As David Shapiro, from the Colorado School of Public Health, is quoted in the report, “Humans aren’t robots, they’re not AI. Employers need to keep in mind that when they design their benefits offerings, they’re making them for real people.”
One way for businesses to focus on improving the mental health of their employees is to take a look at their “Employee Value Proposition” (EVP.) An EVP outlines the total amount of benefits an employer provides to their employee. According to TIAA, a good, holistic EVP will look at total compensation, work-life balance, professional development and learning, culture and community, and mission and purpose. Once an EVP is outlined, it is easier for a company to begin to improve its mental-health benefits.
Many companies offer their workers financial education to support them as a starting point. Another way companies are trying to help their employees is by offering health benefits that include mental-health services. When looking at how a healthy work-life balance can aid an employee’s mental health, offering flexible work arrangements may be one of the most helpful things an employer can do.
“Employers who are implementing practices that connect employee financial and mental-health support may be responding to modern trends to demonstrate corporate responsibility,” the report said.
In addition to working on a more developed EVP, employers should:
- Understand their employee’s needs and perspectives
- Provide accessible services that connect mental health and financial health
- Foster the exchange of practical knowledge and resource-sharing
- Support the whole person
This looks like being aware of what the financial situation of employees might look like. Will they have student loans? Do they need to live in a high-cost-of-living area? Will they need child care? Knowing these answers can help the employer provide adequate support. Some examples of support companies can provide include offering retirement planning and mental-health coverage that includes therapy and medication. It’s also important to create a space where employees have the ability to talk to each other and share their struggles if they choose. Having a community with a sense of camaraderie creates a new support network and allows additional resources to be shared.
Companies need to remember that their employees are also people who may have more going on than just their job. Allowing a flexible schedule and a reasonable distribution of the workload can help relieve stress for workers. Investing in employees to make them feel like they can improve in their careers will also reduce stress. Additionally, offering programs that aid employees outside of the office can limit financial stress from creeping into the workday. A few examples include offering a benefit to help pay off student loans or to provide home-buying assistance.
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Several companies are already putting these strategies into practice.
Patagonia understands the financial stresses that come from having a family and offers early education assistance and on-site child care.
Salesforce provides $100 monthly wellness reimbursements for mental and physical health activities.
Delta launched an “Emergency Savings Program” where the airline will match up to $250 of an employee's contribution to an emergency savings account. Delta also provides their employees $750 to kick off their account. Over 21,500 employees have participated in the program so far.
CitiBank is offering financial rewards to employees who participate in health prevention and wellness activities as an incentive to participate.
PricewaterhouseCoopers offers a student loan paydown benefit. The company will contribute $1200 a year towards an employee’s student loan debt if they are eligible.
Many more companies provide financial education lessons, mental health workshops and stress management programs. Taking care of employees’ mental health is most important during times of transition, like during onboarding. However, these resources must be available at all times for anyone who may need them, and so that they act as preventative care before things get too stressful.
“Most organizations want to support their people. But the problem that we’re seeing is that organizations are reactive when they need to be proactive,” said Shapiro in the report.
When employees have better financial and mental health, their work improves. Productivity goes up, as does general workplace morale. Having mental-health support at a company is an improvement that will continue to show results in the future.
As the report says, “a workplace that actively supports mental and financial wellness can become a more attractive destination for prospective employees.”
2024-03-15T16:19:58Z dg43tfdfdgfd