More than a third of the UK’s top-performing employees worry about the impact work has on their mental well-being, according to a new report.
The Smart Talent Expects report by CoreHR claims 42% of employees believe work negatively impacts their personal lives and 41% worry about the impact it is has having on their mental health.
According to the survey that number rises to nearly half (49%) of 25-34-year-olds.
And despite almost three quarters (73%) of respondents saying a good work-life balance is attractive in an employer, only 41% believe their current job actually allows for this.
In addition, 68% argue their employer should take shared responsibility for their emotional and physical wellbeing.
More than a third (35%) said their current workload is unsustainable and two thirds (64%) also believe introducing new digital technologies into the workplace will enable them to be more efficient in their role.
“People thrive when they’re challenged, but shouldn’t be pushed to breaking point, Employers should always be mindful of setting clear goals as well as boundaries and providing strong support networks for their employees,” said CoreHR Chief Executive, Dean Forbes.
“Job satisfaction and wellbeing go hand-in-hand with better performance, creativity and how well colleagues cooperate. Specifically, smarter HR technologies that give people more ownership over their careers are an incredibly powerful enabler and time-saver. Providing your talent with substandard technology is tantamount to making their jobs harder by causing delays, operating problems and significant workplace stress.”
The survey also found almost half (49%) of respondents would not hesitate to leave their current employer if their career expectations were not met.
And half of the respondents (51%) have also felt let down by their employer in the last six months.
Forbes added: “The assumption that employees who continually work long hours are simply showing their commitment is a dangerous one. Failure to develop and support smart talent in reaching their full potential not only makes your employees want to head for the door but leads towards a vicious cycle of turnover making it equally painful to attract more. The reality is that business leaders need to use smarter technologies to make it easier for employees to perform under pressure whilst also maintaining a healthy work-life balance.”
To read the full Smart Talent Expects report, click here.
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In this episode of the Safety & Health Podcast, ‘Burnout, stress and being human’, Heather Beach is joined by Stacy Thomson to discuss burnout, perfectionism and how to deal with burnout as an individual, as management and as an organisation.
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