INTHEBLACK Mental Health 2021 - Magazine - Page 4
MENTAL
HEALTH
2021
MENTAL
HEALTH
PANDEMIC
The pandemic is, unsurprisingly, highlighted
as the single-largest source of stress for
employees across the Asia-Pacific region.
In a survey of 1500 employees across
13 industries, the City Mental Health Alliance
Hong Kong (CMHA HK) assesses the impact
of the pandemic on mental health problems.
Across Asia-Pacific, nearly one in four
employees (22 per cent) report experiencing
mental health problems in the 12 months to
September 2020. This number is up by
23 per cent to 27 per cent, compared to
CMHA HK’s 2018 survey data.
Fears relating to job security and stress
over business performance have been
among the top five stress factors during
the pandemic, while fear of contracting the
virus and a lack of social activities have also
been identified as key stressors.
The negative impact of presenteeism is
another recurring theme of the research,
with 83 per cent of employees reporting
going to work despite poor mental health.
Of those employees, 76 per cent state that
their performance on those days was below
expectations. The commonly cited drivers
of presenting at work with mental health
problems are too much work (58 per cent)
and fear of negative reviews (49 per cent).
The symptoms of mental ill health, as
reported by the respondents, are as follows:
43%
42%
36%
33%
31%
27%
Tiredness
Feeling mentally drained
Sleep issues
Feeling agitated
Feeling anti-social
Depression
READ THE REPORT HERE
4 ITB October 2021
“Managers’ increasing confidence
to initiate conversations about
mental health and wellbeing
has been a silver lining of this
pandemic and will be even more
critical as they navigate returning
to offices.”
AS S O C I AT E P R O F E S S O R H E L E N A N G U Y E N ,
U N I V E R S I T Y O F SY D N E Y
Source: University of Sydney
“We need to be ensuring people
who are experiencing mental
health issues have the same
access to products that support
their economic security as other
people in the community.”
MICHELLE BLANCHARD, DEPUTY CEO,
SANE AUSTRALIA
Source: ABC
“I think a key thing for leaders to
do is, take some time to set your
own priorities. What’s essential
in this situation, and what’s not?
And then communicate that to
your employees. What do you
need them working on, and what
can you take off their plate?”
PROFESSOR JILL KLEIN,
MELBOURNE BUSINESS SCHOOL
Source: Melbourne Business School