HR, F&B, engineering sectors report the least stigma of talking about mental health at work

On the contrary, workers from real estate, insurance, legal and skilled labour sectors ranked highest among the industries that reported feeling uncomfortable talking to their manager or coworkers about their mental health.

In a survey of 2,000 American workers to better understand the state of mental health in the workplace, it was found that employees in HR, F&B (restaurants), engineering, IT and non-profit industries reported the least stigma of talking about mental health at work.

On the contrary, workers from real estate, insurance, legal and skilled labour sectors ranked highest among the industries that reported not feeling comfortable talking to their manager or coworkers about their mental health.

The full list of industries facing stigma, as well as where workers are receiving information about mental health from their employers, is in the graph below:

Slicing the data, by Maestro Health, by other demographics, 54% of employees with managers in their 20s and 30s feel comfortable raising the subject of mental health, while 43% of employees with managers in their 50s or older feel similarly comfortable. Smaller companies seemed to do better in that those with 50 to 249 employees consistently recorded lower levels of stigma and higher levels of education.

Craig Maloney, CEO. Maestro Health, commented: "It shouldn’t take a crisis for company leaders to put mental wellbeing at the forefront, but now more than ever, employers should be working to ensure their employees have what they need to be well."

As such, of the 2,000+ workers surveyed, 77% get health insurance from their employer. A majority (61%) of these workers are satisfied with the mental health coverage offered as part of their overall health plan.

However, many employers are still falling short in educating their workforce about mental health - more than half of those surveyed never received information from their employer about mental health. 

It’s hard to measure how much of this represents an actual versus perceived deficit—are employers not providing the information or are employees just not seeing and absorbing it? Still, the burden lies on the employer to effectively educate employees. Gone are the days where health and benefits information is communicated at open enrollment and open enrollment only. Employers must market benefits information to their employees year-round to ensure adequate adoption.

Finally, the survey identified the ways in which work-related stress manifests in employees, which are:

• 56% - Feel overwhelmed
• 55% - Feel irritable/angry
• 54% - Headaches
• 41% - Muscle tension/pain
• 39% - Feel depressed
• 34% - Struggle to focus
• 26% - Upset stomach/indigestion
• 24% - Change in appetite
• 12% - Weakened immune system

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