Only half of UK employers have a mental health policy in place!

Only half of UK employers have a mental health policy in place

Only half of UK employers have a mental health policy in place, despite the fact that 97% of professionals believe their employer has a responsibility to support the mental health and wellbeing of staff.

The results come from a Robert Walters whitepaper ahead of World Mental Health Day on Wednesday the 10th of October (tomorrow).

Neil Morgan, Associate Director at Robert Walters comments:

“Professionals believe (62%) that training for managers as mental health ‘first aiders’ is important – but our research found that only 38% of companies have such a policy in place.

“While formal policies are an important part of an effective mental health strategy, this should not be seen as a tick box exercise for companies. Professionals place a great deal of value on having managers who are aware of this as a general priority and have the capacity to address it effectively.”

Research undertaken by Robert Walters found a disparity between strategies that are considered ‘important’ by employees, and those that are offered by the employer. For example, 74% of professionals ranked the ‘support for staff returning from (mental health related) absence’ highly, whilst only 50% of companies provide this.

Strategies such as remote working, which are widely offered by employers (71%), are considered less important in terms of contributing to mental wellbeing by professionals (60%).

James Murray, Director at Robert Walters comments:

“Our survey revealed that over three quarters (76%) of professionals would be ‘uncomfortable’ discussing mental health at their place of work, for fear of damaging their career prospects. This is a major red flag and employers need to step up and consider how prominent a role they can play in encouraging their staff to be more open.

“By taking a proactive approach and leading by example, senior managers can play a key role in helping to develop the culture of their company to encourage discussion of mental well-being.”

The tide also seems to be turning on hiring managers, who have been slow to react to the 88% of professionals who consider the mental health policies of a potential employer important when looking for a new role. Just 3% of companies mention their mental well-being strategies in job adverts.

42% of professionals admitted to seeking out information about a prospective employers mental well-being strategies via review sites, given that the majority of professionals (64%) stated it was ‘difficult’ to find such information on a company website.