According to a study done by Optum, 46% of employees in corporate in India are identified with stress. Given the current trend, anxiety and other mental health conditions have become prevalent among employees, sometimes even affecting their safety. But looking around, not many organizations have invested in end-to-end emotional safety and well-being of their employees. This could become the undoing of several organizations in the near future, thanks to the employee assistance program that has increased the awareness about anxiety, stress, and other mental health issues, and highlighted the importance of safety through workshops, counselling sessions, and assistance programs.

While this gives an over-the-top view, here is why, as HRs and leaders, you need to start investing in your employees’ mental health, emotional safety, and well-being.

Absenteeism and Presenteeism:

Absenteeism disrupts the normal functioning of the employees of a team, more so when it is unplanned or unexpected, also accounting for a significant loss in billing.

While reasons for absenteeism are many, the most common one is sickness leave, and today, sick leaves are predominantly being utilized for physical ailments and to de-stress or get better from anxiety-related mental health disorders.

Presenteeism is a relatively newer term among corporate employees in the Indian context but could be having far more severe consequences than absenteeism currently does. Presenteeism is the condition of employees being present but underperforming due to poor physical or mental health, costing the organization dearly! We must all understand that having untreated mental health conditions can lead to severe depression or give rise to suicidal thoughts in an individual, putting safety at risk.

An increase in absenteeism, presenteeism and attrition directly impacts the organization’s costs. While it may seem slightly harmless initially, it could have a lasting irrevocable impact in the long term. This is one of the prime reasons to invest in the mental well-being and safety of the employees.

Work Pressure VS Employee turnover costs:

Pressure at work for employees could be fuelled by several factors impossible deadlines, difficult-to-handle bosses, hard to please clients, a toxic work environment, to name a few! Financial and family or relationship-related pressures could add to the tension at work, leading to anxiety, stress, and other mental health conditions.

Employees begin grappling around, unable to focus on work, their potential inhibited significantly, thus impacting overall performance. The cycle continues until eventually resulting in attrition, increasing employee turnover costs! This is where having a good employee assistance program can prove beneficial. These programs offer periodic workshops and self-assessment tests to assess the anxiety and stress levels and employees’ mental health.

Employees and HR must watch for any warning signs in their colleagues like prolonged stress or anxiety, and if they are doubtful about a colleague’s emotional state, mental health, or safety, they must guide them to a counsellor through their company’s employee assistance programs.

Reduce compensation claims and health care costs:

Policies aiming at the holistic well-being of employees, considering different lifestyles, work cycles, modes of commute to and from the office, and more such factors have been known to impact employees’ compensation claims and health care costs.

With provisions that allow easy access to the workplace and incentives to curb unhealthy lifestyle choices, we as employers can help employees manoeuvre towards better physical and mental health. Organizations with similar practices and periodic workshop and assistance programs have noticed a dip in health care costs, which becomes a win-win for both the employees and the employers!

Reduce the risk of accidents and grievances:

Stress and over-working cause both physical and mental fatigue, eventually leading to lethargy at work, increasing the chances of grievances, safety risks, mishaps, and hazardous accidents, particularly in the manufacturing-based industry. Also, studies have shown that long working hours in the sector lead to anxiety and other mental health issues.

Being mindful and proactively catering to employees’ varying needs concerning family, health, emotional safety, work, and personal relationships through employee assistance programs help reduce stress, anxiety, fatigue, and ill health, further lowering the chances of accidents, grievances, assuring employee safety.

Improved Productivity:

Creating and sustaining a holistic, approachable support system for employees can ensure positive mental well-being and employee safety. Accessible employee support systems also equip employees with tools that help them retain their confidence, curbing anxiety and stress, thus boosting morale and productivity. Such assistance programs could also help instill loyalty among employees, further reducing attrition.

Safety and Security for Employees:

With technology getting incorporated into our personal and professional lives, employees today need more than just physical safety and security. With integrated workspaces and the growing freedom to work from anywhere, organizations need to ensure secure boundaries to enable employees to work with a sense of safety and security.

Overlooking such safety measures may bring anxiety and stress to employees, leading to physical and mental health issues, eventually increasing employee turnover rates for the organization. Organizations must also be stringent about Posh to ensure the safety and security of women employees.

Time to break the stigma:

Mental Health-related illnesses remain a taboo in our country, even in the higher echelons of society. Corporates are no different. Starting the conversation on mental health helps normalize the need to talk about it, enabling employees to become aware of their anxiety and stress and making them more forthcoming in seeking help to combat mental illnesses.

There is no better place than Corporates to consciously advocate the need to address safety and mental wellness for happier and healthier organizations.

Better Customer Satisfaction:

Strong employee wellness policies in the organization promote better work relationships among employees and teams to boost morale and confidence. These pave the way to higher productivity, which eventually does wonders to your customer satisfaction index.

Become the forerunner and advocate of Employee Mindfulness and Mental well-being:

In the current fast-paced work environment, it falls upon the organization to create the much-needed safety zone for employees to open up, identify their setbacks, work on them and bounce back stronger. While several international organizations have begun investing in improving employee wellness, it is high time Indian corporates did the same too!

These are the most prominent reasons to consider investing in your Employees’ mental well-being.

Proactively promote better employee-supervisor relationships, advocate for manageable, flexible work hours, and make way for healthy living even during work hours.

Contact us to plan, understand, build and implement policies that focus on mindful and holistic employee well-being, from the bottom line to the top.