Workplace culture has evolved beyond employees’ value lying solely in productivity; their whole selves and well-being matters, too. A sustainable work-life balance is critical to safeguarding well-being and improving the performance of workers. Now more than ever, employers hold responsibility for nurturing employee wellness to enable them to succeed at their jobs, and they must take intentional measures to make it happen.
For employees to be their best at work, remain in their jobs and stay healthy, they must have a balance and be able to enjoy life outside of the workplace. Meta-analysis from the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health has suggested a positive influence of work-life balance on organizational performance, career motivation, attendance, employee recruitment and retention. Additionally, it reduces outcomes such as psychological distress, emotional exhaustion, anxiety and depression.
A necessary investment
Whether we like it or not, mental health challenges play a role in the workplace and can stem from or be worsened by job-related experiences. More than one fifth of U.S. adults, about 58 million people, live with a diagnosed mental illness, and only half of that population receive mental health services (National Institute of Mental Health). It’s no longer a shiny bonus for employers to provide mental health support. Employees are exasperated by a global health crisis and this support has turned into a business imperative across all organizational levels.
While the prevalence of mental health challenges is increasing nationwide, so too is the rate of employee attrition; more employees than ever are leaving their jobs for mental health reasons, including unsustainable workloads (Harvard Business Review). While rates of millennial and Gen Z attrition were already high in 2019 — at 34% of respondents overall — in just two years, by 2021, that rate had increased to a staggering 50%, according to a Mind Share Partners mental health report.
In response, employers are investing more in employee mental health support — from mental health training to more paid off for mental health days. Because of increased mental health training and discussion, in 2021, 47% of employees reported their manager was able to support them if they had a mental health condition or symptom (compared to 39% in 2019), according to the above-mentioned report. In addition, employees are using accommodations to a greater extent, including time for therapy appointments and extended or more frequent breaks throughout the workday.
A commitment to flexibility
After many employees experienced remote work for the first time during the pandemic, a collective reckoning changed the way we work forever. People want more autonomy and power to choose when, and how, they work best. Key to promoting a sustainable work-life balance, employers must provide flexible arrangements and establish boundaries around communication and urgency.
Working remotely (or hybrid, which means to work from home on select days) is increasingly coveted by employees, and proven to be good for both workers and business. For example, workers with flexible schedules worked longer hours but achieved more and were happier with work, according to a pre-pandemic study completed over a nine-month period (Forbes). Studies show it also increases productivity and job satisfaction.
These changes provide workers with more freedom to be present in their family’s lives, prioritize personal hobbies, participate in exercise and take care of what matters most to them. A 2022 McKinsey survey explains the extent to which American workers are embracing remote work. Of all job holders in the United States, 58% say they can work remotely at least part of the time. Not only is it common, but results show that most workers — 87% of respondents — would want to work remotely much of the week if given the choice.
Ideally, flexible work models should be a mutual partnership between employers and their employees that enable both to enjoy multiple benefits and perform at their very best.
This content was originally published by the Disability Management Employer Coalition (DMEC) as part of the Absence Matters column.