Expert view: Address the root cause of many health issues with better workplace culture

Dr Sally Wilson, head of workplace health and wellbeing research at the Institute for Employment Studies, outlines why employers already have tools at their disposal to support young people’s mental health.

This article first appeared in REBA's Forecasting future health costs: developing sustainable employer-funded health strategies report.

There is growing concern that the mental health challenges facing younger workers in the UK are rising to crisis levels. A government report linked to its Get Britain Working white paper reveals that young people with mental health conditions are nearly five times more likely to be economically inactive compared with their peers. One in four of those out of work because of ill-health are aged under 35.

Speaking at the launch of the report, then work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall emphasised the urgent need for intervention: “We must do far more to help people stay in work and get back quickly if they fall out.” This underscores a concern that without better support systems embedded in workplaces, individuals will continue to suffer.

Amid increased attention on these issues, controversy and misunderstanding remain, particularly around causes of sickness absence. In July, comments from Sir Charlie Mayfield, chair of an independent workplace health review, generated headlines about “I hate my boss” syndrome.

He warned that workplace problems are being over-medicalised when, in many cases, the answer is not a sick note but better day-to-day managerial behaviour and workplace culture. Simply signing people off work does not address the underlying issues, so problems may re-emerge on their return.

The reality is that employers already have tools at their disposal to support young people’s mental health before they reach a point where they no longer feel able to work.

Signpost support

One potential source of support is an employee assistance programme (EAP). Yet the IES’s Supporting Healthy Lifestyles Among Young Adults in the Workplace (2024) report suggests that many young workers have little understanding of what an EAP is or whether it could help them.

The IES’s Young People’s Mental Health in the Workplace report (2023), conducted for the Health Foundation, found that three in 10 young people had either left a previous job or were planning to leave their current job because of its impact on their mental health (19% and 11% respectively). It is likely that many leave without being aware of free, accessible support that might make a difference.

Employers may invest in EAPs assuming they will deliver wide-scale benefit, but if awareness is poor then they will fail to reach those most in
need. It is critical that early-career workers understand what benefits are available – what an EAP is, how to access it, and what outcomes to expect.

Without clearer communication and stronger workplace support systems, there is a real risk that provision exists only on paper and fails to make a difference where it counts. If this gap persists, both young people and the wider economy will bear the cost.