08. Mental Health and Employee Well-being Initiatives in the Workplace

Introduction

In recent times, mental health has emerged as a significant aspect of workplace strategies globally, especially after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic has resulted in a surge in stress, burnout, and emotional exhaustion among the employees which, in turn, have led organizations to realize the impact that mental health could have on performance, engagement, and retention. Apart from the diminishing stigma and increasing awareness, Human Resource professionals are at the forefront of designing and implementing initiatives to be able to provide mental health assistance. This change is not only consistent with ethical responsibility but also a good business decision considering the high cost of absenteeism, presenteeism, and turnover, which are results of poor mental health.

According to some recent studies, it has been revealed that over 80% of workers doing white-collar jobs in India are suffering from some mental health symptoms. More than 50% of them have told that they have three or more. Disorders such as depression, burnout, lack of sleep, and anxiety have become very common. The most important factors are: too much work, not getting recognition, job loss, bad management, lack of money, stress with the family, and the balance between work and life.

Recognizing the need to address the growing mental health issues, companies take measures for welfare of their workforce through various initiatives. Utilization of Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs), launching online wellness sessions, conducting campaigns on mental health issues, and peer support group setups, the provision of counseling services both confidential and professional are a few of these initiatives. On the other

As an example, companies with clear mental health policies, leadership supporters who constantly openly talk about mental health are more likely to get higher participation in their support programs.

Although, obstacles still exist. The stigma that surrounded mental health remains a very big problem that is a barrier to disclosure of mental health issues by 22% of workers, and the primary reason is they fear being judged or losing their job. Besides, only 9% decide to use EAPs provided by the company, among the reasons they give are confidentiality and quality. On top of that, there is very little understanding about the facilities that are there—thus, only 46% of workers are conscious of what their organization.

The economic repercussions are very large indeed. The research paper states that Indian employers lost ₹1.1 lakh crore (around $14 billion USD) because of productivity losses resulting from absenteeism, presenteeism, and attrition that occurred in just one year. Mental health-related turnover alone was responsible for nearly ₹45,000 crore ($5.9 billion).

In order to reduce these expenses as well as create healthy work environments, companies need to take a proactive stance. Such a stance would involve among others making mental health issues normal, providing flexible working arrangements, training managers in emotional intelligence, and integrating well-being into the organizational culture. To elicit lasting change, Deloitte’s report recommends activation of a workplace maturity continuum from reactive support to strategic and systemic programs.

(Deloitte, 2022)

Conclusion

Nowadays mental health is no longer an isolated matter—it is the very core of employee well-being and enterprise performance. On the one hand, organizations have been incubating resources on offer, on the other hand, cultural change, leadership buy-in, and yes, continuous commitment are the ingredients for real impact. Workplaces are changing, and putting mental well-being at the top of the to-do list will not only lead to cost savings but also foster more compassionate, inclusive, and productive workplaces where people flourish.

Reference

Deloitte. (2022). Mental health and well-being in the workplace. Deloitte Health Equity Institute. https://www2.deloitte.com/in/en/pages/about-deloitte/articles/mental-health-and-wellbeing-at-the-workplace.html

Ballard, D.W., Lodge, G.C. & Pike, K.M. (2025) 'Mental health at work: a practical framework for employers', Frontiers in Public Health, 13, 1552981. 

Bell, C., Willmott, H. & Robinson, E. (2022) 'Biopsychosocial and organisational mechanisms underlying associations between mental health problems and workplace productivity', Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 57(1), pp. 199-207.

Chen, L.S., Patel, R. & Kumar, A. (2024) 'Employee wellbeing in the workplace: The role of HR in mental health and wellness initiatives', International Journal of Economic Studies and Management, 7(4), pp. 145-162.

Barnett, A.G., Dobson, A.J., McElduff, P., Salomaa, V., Kuulasmaa, K. & Sans, S. (2024) 'Group-level workplace interventions to improve mental health in low control, high-demand office-based jobs: A scoping review', Annals of Work Exposures and Health, 68(4), pp. 335-351.