Here are the elements we know make an impact on business profit: Sales. A top product. A strong team. But how about mental health – is there a mental health business impact?
Yes, and it’s in every element of those very same elements. A team can only be strong when they’re mentally healthy. A product can only be amazing when the people working on it are fresh, innovative, and at the top of their game. And sales don’t come out of thin air: they arise from a productive, sustainable team.
So let’s get into it. Exactly how much money can good mental health save your business? It’s time to find out.
Unlike many employee benefits—like fruit baskets in the kitchen or every variety of desk—mental health benefits are non-negotiable in the modern workplace. Their track record is indisputable; their impact on business success is critical.
But sometimes mental health benefits are hard to argue for. In a tough financial year, you might feel insecure pitching the “fuzzy” positives of a mental health benefit for your team. That’s why we’re giving it to you in terms even the strictest of CFOs or investors can understand. Mental health isn’t just crucial for employee well-being and happiness; it also makes smart business sense. Here’s why.
Mental health is present in your employees’ lives, whether you like it or not
Your employees face psychological challenges every day: that’s just part of life. Whether you invest in mental health or not, your employees experience stress, anxiety, depression, demotivation, burnout and other common mental health issues.
You can’t decide whether or not your employees experience mental health issues. You can only decide how to support them.
This has only become more prevalent in our times—a McKinsey study found that since COVID-19, 42% of employees globally have reported a decline in their mental health. Globally, depression, anxiety disorders and other mental health conditions cost the world economy $1 trillion per year in lost productivity, according to the World Health Organization.
That means that poor mental health isn’t the kind of problem you can just ignore. It is present in your workplace; and unchecked, it will grow worse. You can’t decide whether or not your employees experience mental health issues. You can only decide how to support them.
Demotivation, decreased performance and burnout are the costliest problems HR departments face
Two of the biggest insurance companies in Germany have found that absenteeism rates due to mental health range between 3.1 days and 2.6 days per employee per year. So, how much does absenteeism cost your company?
Let’s put together a simplified cost calculation.
Absenteeism rate per employee per year: 3 days
Estimated average employee annual wage: €50,000
Yearly absenteeism cost per employee per year: €604
Overall yearly absenteeism cost for 300 employees: €181,200
And that’s just absenteeism. What about the cost of presenteeism, wherein employees are too demotivated or stressed to work productively?
Depending upon the country, business and industry, presenteeism is considered to cost between two and ten times as much as absenteeism. Let’s take the most conservative figure and say that presenteeism is costing your business twice as much as absenteeism: for the 300 employee company, that equals a whopping €362,400.
Ready for your final bill?
For a company of 300 employees, poor mental health is costing your organization more than half a million euros every year.
That’s a cost you can’t afford to ignore.
Employees demand mental health support
Even if you’re on the fence about employee mental health support, your employees aren’t.
According to Forbes, 80% of workers would consider leaving their current job for one that focuses more on employee mental health. McKinsey found that 91% of employees believe their employers should care about their emotional health, while 85% said behavioral health benefits were important when evaluating a new job.
Offering a mental health benefit means you’re more likely to attract top talent. It also means you’re more likely to keep it.
And this is only going to become more important as workforce demographics change. Mental health support is particularly demanded by younger generations, with half of millennials and 75% of Gen Z’ers quitting in the past for mental health reasons. In addition, 60% of Gen Z employees said mental health resources specifically were important when selecting an employer.
Essentially, offering a mental health benefit means you’re more likely to attract top talent. It also means you’re more likely to keep it: Workplaces that offer an employee mental health benefit see 60% less turnover.
Mental health support actually works
This is a scary list of damning costs and figures that add up when you don’t support mental health. But the best news? An employee mental health benefit will turn the tide and keep your business afloat.
Mental health benefits reduce absenteeism by 25% and increase productivity by 24%… at least!
At nilo.health, we see this every day. 96% of our users report “strong improvement” in their mental health after using nilo.health. For those looking to tackle specific issues, like stress, we also offer a strong return on investment: 71% of users struggling with stress improve after using nilo.health.
Want to know more? We have all the answers you need for why a mental health benefit is crucial for your company.
Or, don’t waste anymore time: Book a demo today!
