Dive Brief:

• Mental health conditions are widespread in America, as the World Health Organization estimates that by 2030 there will be 12 billion lost workdays due to depression and anxiety alone. The resulting double dose of negative impact (human costs and dollar losses) demonstrates why mental health support and services are critical in the workplace, according to Employee Benefits News.

• With that as context, employers are slowly but surely starting to offer EAP (employee assistance programs) that focus on mental health and wellness issues, EBN reports, in an attempt to address stress and other mental health conditions driven by issues such as substance abuse, grief and personal relationship issues. 

• One problem preventing more attention to this issue is misperception and poor information about the cost-effectiveness (and effectiveness in general) of mental health services. Then, there is the social stigma typically associated with mental health issues. Those factors have had some employers dragging their feet when it comes to investing in solutions to meet this glaring employee need, but the situation is changing, according to EBN.

Insight

The EBN article points out that by offering mental health EAP benefits, employers can reduce illness leave, absenteeism and disability costs, increase employee productivity and engagement, and also use these benefits as a marketing feature to attract and retain top talent. 

Among other things, experts say frontline HR managers should be educated on how to recognize a potential mental health problem and how to approach someone about that problem. In addition, there are new, emerging technology-fueled solutions involving data analytics and smartphones that can help employers and HR manage the situation with sensitivity and, ironically, a human approach.