Forty-eight percent of women said work has a negative impact on their mental health, compared to 40 percent of men. Women are also less confident about discussing their mental health with their employer.
34 percent of men called the disease due to poor mental health and were happy to disclose this information with their employer. This contrasts with only 24 percent of women.
What’s more, Nuffield Health discovered that 22 percent of women went to work more than 10 times when their mental health was poor compared to just 16 percent of men.
Other studies show less than half of women rated their current job satisfaction, motivation, and productivity as “good” post-pandemic. One in three women I thought of cutting staff or leaving it altogether.
Lisa Gunn, mental health prevention officer at Nuffield Health He commented, “To prevent a loss of female talent, organizations must look at their workplace practices to ensure they are female-supportive and fit for purpose.
“There is no single reason why women experience poorer mental health at work than men, but the way social structures and gender norms interact can have a significant impact on emotional well-being.
“Managers need to fundamentally rethink company structures to promote fairness and equal opportunity and prevent mental health decline and burnout for all employees.”
Lisa offers advice on how employers can do their part to create a connected and transparent workplace, which empowers women and their workplaces to support their physical and emotional health:
Notice signs of poor emotional state
To prevent the loss of talent—regardless of gender—managers must recognize signs of poor emotional well-being and feel confident in approaching people and offering support.
Signs that an employee may be dealing with poor mental health can include changes in their physical appearance and changes in mood or feelings. Some may show increased irritability or get upset easily. Some may show erratic reactions to minor work issues, such as having to reschedule an internal meeting.
Absenteeism can increase and you may notice an overall decrease in someone’s work productivity, or they have difficulties with problem-solving or concentrating.
On top of noticing more obvious signs, employers may consider offering employees emotional literacy training, providing them with the skills to recognize signs of distress in others and themselves and to be confident in dealing with them. This way they can nurture a workforce that is able to recognize and treat signs of poor mental health in both these and others.
Talk time
As we already know, female employees are often reluctant to talk openly about their mental health at work, despite almost half saying it negatively affects their well-being.
Female employees often report higher stress levels in male-dominated jobs. This is usually because they feel they have to work harder to demonstrate a similar level of competence with their male peers. They may also fear the professional consequences of experiencing job stress, such as missing out on promotions.
It is good for managers to try to understand why people come to work despite their poor mental health. The more we know about our teams’ actions, the more support we can provide to help them and reduce behaviors like attendance.
Aim to spend time with staff each week, and practice “active listening”—a skill that requires genuine understanding and reflection of what is being said and providing a thoughtful response, especially for those experiencing symptoms of stress and anxiety.
Creating a culture of transparency and equality
A gender study reported that while many professional women were aware of the importance of visibility in mind for promotions, they intentionally chose invisibility.
Reasons included not feeling authentic enough, bad experiences of previous self-promotional attempts and the belief that staying out of the spotlight generally allows for a better personal/work balance.
women too 24 percent Men are less likely to receive advice from a superior leader, suggesting that unconscious bias still exists in many workplace cultures and that lack of support contributes to women’s hindrance in their jobs.
These existing disparities exacerbate the mental health gender gap. Because women are less likely to be promoted than men, they are less likely to hold positions of power. Women in positions with less decision-making power are more likely to have poor mental health than men, because they are less able to control the demands of work.
Leaders must be aware of the imbalances of equality and how to remove these barriers and prejudices, which prevent the recognition and advancement of women.
Provide training, support and mentoring opportunities and educate employees, at all levels, about unconscious biases. Ensure there is company-wide awareness of self-promotional opportunities. Transparency about salaries can be beneficial.
Recognizing flexibility is central to professional and personal growth
many womenUnofficial guardians of where and when the whole family needs to be. and single mothers three times more From breadwinner parents to be custodians of their children’s schedules.
This mental burden can be stressful in an entirely different way than the demands of more practical tasks. While it does deplete time and energy reserves, it is rarely acknowledged and is usually taken for granted.
Your reputation as an inclusive employer won’t go far without offering flexibility, which can be offered in varying degrees to help women feel supported both professionally and in their personal lives.
Encourage individuals to adopt flexible working patterns that work for them – eg, working hours adjusted to accommodate a morning school run. In some companies, employees can take advantage of fully integrated “flexi time” policies; Other perks include part-time hours, shared parental leave, and remote work roles.
Female employees, in particular, may worry about the need to be “always on,” so team leaders should stress that employees shouldn’t feel pressured to respond to emails outside of work hours and encourage them to turn off devices after work.
appropriate support for women
Responsible companies should introduce maternity and menopause policies and workplace modifications to protect female employees from feeling discriminated against. Not only that but once the policy is introduced, the organizations need to follow through with it. There is no point in having a policy if no one knows it exists or where to go when they need support.
Employers should also direct individuals towards the emotional wellbeing support that is available to them. This may include Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs). cognitive behavioral therapy sessions (CBT), which gives individuals direct access to a professional who can help them understand and break unhelpful thought patterns, reframe unhelpful thoughts and deal with new and uncertain situations.
Some of the confidential support they receive may help employees address factors associated with poor emotional well-being.
Managers are in the best position to recognize, prevent, and treat poor emotional well-being, but senior leadership has an important role to play as well. By setting work standards, inspiring managers – regardless of gender – and recognizing their efforts.
These actions will help organizations achieve an elusive win: creating a more inclusive workplace, while empowering women at the same time.
