Mental Health Index: Workers Feeling It More than Ever

Lifeworks has released its latest Mental Health Index with results indicating that Australian workers are feeling the burden of living under Covid restrictions, with added pressure coming from Australia’s vaccination strategy.

Key findings:

• Overall mental-health score of -11.9 compared to the pre-pandemic benchmark, representing a slight improvement from June, when the score reached its lowest point since October 2020.
• Managers were 60 per cent more likely than non-managers to request mandatory vaccinations upon the return-to-workplace.
• Seventeen per cent of respondents feel that the culture of their organization does not support their personal wellbeing. This group has a mental-health score of -24.3.
• Eighteen per cent of respondents are unsure of their company’s culture of support. This group has a mental-health score of -13.6.
• Sixty-five per cent of respondents feel that the culture of their organization supports their personal wellbeing. This group has a mental-health score of -9.5.

On Vaccinations:

• Thirty-five per cent of respondents want mandated vaccination policies implemented by their employer. This group’s mental-health score is -10.3.
• Forty-two per cent of respondents do not want employer-mandated vaccination policies. This group’s mental-health score is -12.1.
• Twenty-three per cent of respondents are uncertain about employer-mandated vaccination policies. This group’s mental-health score is -12.0.

The data:

The monthly survey by LifeWorks was conducted through an online survey from June 30 to July 12, 2021, with 1,000 respondents in Australia. All respondents reside in Australia and were employed within the last six months.

Quotes:

“As physical health continues to be a consideration in return-to-workplace discussions across Australia, it is important that conversations about mental health do not take a back seat. We needed time to adjust to working from home and will need to adjust to returning to the workplace. Australian employers need to foster environments where their teams feel welcomed, valued and listened to. Supporting employee wellbeing requires a holistic approach and now more than ever, must be prioritized by business leaders in order for their employees to feel safe,” Paula Allen, senior Vice President, research and total well being at Lifeworks.