As the United States continues to battle out of the COVID-19 global pandemic and workers are returning to warehouses and offices, mental health is becoming an issue for workplace safety. In fact, 40% of all workers who are returning to the workforce say that they are facing some level of mental distress. This level of mental distress may have a direct impact on the number of Connecticut workers’ compensation claims that are filed moving forward in the years to come.
There is good coming out of this for employees and employers. As studies continue to show the mental toll that the pandemic has had on workers from every industry, employers are recognizing a need to prioritize mental health in the same capacity that physical health is prioritized. This is not just good for employees and the safety of employees it is also good for employers who are seeing a $4 return on every $1 spent on mental health intervention by way of improved health and productivity.
The National Safety Council and NORC at the University of Chicago teamed up to create a calculator to help employers understand the cost of not prioritizing mental health among their employees. A pre-COVID-19 look at these numbers indicated that employers spend on average $15,000 on an employees mental well-being. Since this number was calculated before COVID-19 and with Americans facing a steep incline in mental health issues, this number is likely underreporting the cost facing employers due to mental health disorders of its employees.
As employees return to work more and more are indicating that the workplace contributes to their mental distress. In fact, nearly 85% of all employees indicated that where they work contributed to the mental health issues that they were facing. This staggering number should indicate to business leaders that prioritizing mental health needs to be the top thing on their to-do lists in the coming years.
Mental distress has been shown to have a direct impact on health and safety in the workplace. With more and more employees feeling the strain of mental distress, it stands to reason that over the next few years we will begin to see more Connecticut workers’ compensation claims being filed and mental distress being one of the main factors in these new claims.
While you’re working if you find that your mental health is being undermined and leads to unsafe working conditions, you may want to contact a board certified attorney to review your case. Contact our office and one of our attorneys will speak with you about protecting your long-term interests.
