Unlocking employee wellbeing: Reduce burnout and enhance productivity through a ‘total wellbeing’ approach 

During a cost-of-living crisis, it will come as little surprise that increased anxiety over finances translates into mental health struggles.

Mercer’s Inside Employees’ Minds study reveals that mental and emotional health has climbed the ranks of employee concerns since last year, especially for younger employees¹.  It’s now the fourth-highest-ranking issue overall, after pay, work-life balance and physical health. 

There is a sense of urgency here: Employees know their wellbeing cannot be put on hold. Burnout is the second most common reason for employees deciding to leave their current employers. 

To address burnout, we must begin by understanding what causes it. Burnout is more than just extreme stress and can more accurately be described as “derailed high performance”. It affects individuals in different ways.

A person experiences stress when their perception of a threat or pressure exceeds their perceived ability to cope. When we start a new role, we often experience a “honeymoon period” when we feel fresh and motivated, swiftly followed by a build-up of pressure — which may be exacerbated by poor work-life balance. Over time, our stress becomes chronic, leading to permanent exhaustion and burnout. As a rule of thumb, when neither a good night’s sleep nor a holiday is enough to reverse symptoms of exhaustion, it’s burnout rather than stress.

The good news is that pressure isn’t all bad. Short spurts of stress enhance our immune response, mental alertness, creativity and performance — you could say these help to hone our abilities as “corporate athletes”. Problems arise when there is a lack of recovery. High performers need a reminder that relaxation isn’t wasteful or laziness but necessary for managing stress and avoiding burnout.

Increasingly, the C-suite is aware not only of the war for talent but also of the link between talent retention and attraction and an organisational focus on health and wellbeing.

Employees are realigning their personal needs and work requirements and are pushing for flexible working practices. We are faced with a tight labour market, and the balance of power has been shifting from employers to employees. 

Our study shows a rising demand for wellbeing services, particularly from younger employees. The corporate answer that works, in our experience, is an integrated wellbeing strategy based on real data and covering all dimensions of wellbeing, from physical and mental health to financial, social, environmental and occupational wellbeing.

So, what does such a “total wellbeing” approach look like?

In fact, two of the most influential rating agencies are actively looking into including a wellbeing metric in their company assessments. Leaders are also asked to report publicly on ESG — and health and wellbeing is an essential part of that; at least, it should be. Emphasising the role wellbeing plays in contributing to a holistic and responsible corporate framework is a must.

There are two important points to bear in mind when developing your strategy:

In our study, a reduced workload was the top response when we asked what would support employees’ mental health. A modified work schedule was also in the top three answers. This emphasises the need for systemic interventions and an improved workplace culture. Reduced workload need not mean reduced productivity, as evidenced by the world’s largest four-day-week trial.² Most companies in the trial were satisfied with maintaining business performance and productivity.

The global initiative’s results also revealed a 71% reduction in employee burnout and a 54% improvement in work-life balance during the six-month trial of a four-day week (with no pay loss). Absence, attrition rates, stress, anxiety and fatigue all decreased.

This indicates that workload is a key player in this complex equation of productivity and wellbeing. We say “complex” because it’s not as simple as arguing that “less work equals improved wellbeing”. Since productivity increased during the pilot study, we can see that “working smarter” is key here, not working less.

The truth is, it’s much easier to work smarter when your personal needs are being identified and met; for example, having the flexibility to undertake your caring responsibilities, being part of a team, having a sense of purpose in the work you do, enjoying control over your workflow and having psychological safety.

In an enabling environment, a sense of autonomy enhances an employee’s self-belief and boosts their productivity. A 2019 study conducted by Oxford University’s Saïd Business School and BT shows that happy workers are 13% more productive³.

Other benefits and actions highlighted by our survey respondents relate to improved access to mental health services, such as enhanced employee assistance programmes or mental health apps. But tech solutions, such as AI, work best when combined with human empathy and should not be viewed as standalone solutions. There are also issues regarding regulation, empirical validation and data security to consider.

Why not just offer people yoga classes and resilience training? Because employees have a range of complex needs that relate to their roles inside and outside work. Although one-off interventions may provide short-term benefits, well-designed mental health pathways are proven to reduce staff absence, while leading to a reduction in the cost of healthcare claims. 

Our research shows that workers over 55 have different needs to their younger counterparts. They are more concerned about their ability to retire, and their physical health, than achieving work-life balance or protecting their mental health — issues that dominate in the younger age groups.

Access to financial education and retirement planning is therefore key for this demographic. Although older workers’ physical health is inextricably linked to cognitive health as well as mental and emotional wellbeing, there are plenty of studies showing that it can be detrimental to health to see retirement as a cliff edge. Sometimes people go on their first long holiday in years and experience a health crisis, such as a cardiovascular event, due to the sudden change in lifestyle. 

It can be helpful to create phased retirement plans — which also benefit organisations. Experienced employees have so much to offer, and leaders are well advised to take advantage of their valuable skills.

To do so, we must provide occupational health services to help keep older people in the workforce. Early retirement is not always a lifestyle choice. The majority of early retirees have chronic health issues and disabilities and, according to the Office for National Statistics, more than half (53%) of those who are not working due to long-term sickness report mental health issues.

Meanwhile, one in five people of working age is classed as “disabled”, so it’s clear that organisational healthcare programmes are essential to the overall productivity of UK PLC. There are some excellent rehabilitation programmes that help people to achieve their occupational goals. But what we ultimately need are high-quality health and wellbeing programmes at work that prevent long-term disability in the first place.

Footnotes

1.Mercer. Inside Employees’ Minds, 2024, available at https://www.mercer.com/en-gb/insights/workforce-and-careers/building-relatable-organisations/navigating-the-new-world-at-work/#:~:text=2023%20was%20a%20challenging%20year,and%20connected%20during%20their%20workday.

2.The 4 Day Week Campaign. “4 Day Week UK Pilot Programme”, 2023, available at https://www.4dayweek.co.uk/pilot-programme.

3.University of Oxford. “Happy Workers Are 13% More Productive”, 24 October 2019, available at https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2019-10-24-happy-workers-are-13-more-productive.