The 2024 NAMI Workplace Mental Health Poll

A NAMI-Ipsos poll conducted in January 2024, and focused on full-time workers employed at companies with at least 100 employees, found that most Americans believe it’s appropriate to talk about mental health at work but may not be prepared or feel comfortable to do so. Additionally, the poll found that American employees benefit from having access to mental health care coverage and need more help to understand and utilize what resources are available to them. Find all of our data in this slide deck.

In alignment with our StigmaFree Strategies for Workplaces, we surveyed American employees to better understand the current mental health awareness and education, company culture and access to mental health care and resources.

Jump to Key Findings:

• Awareness
• Culture of Caring
• Access
• Infographic
• Resources

Employee Mental Health Awareness and Education:

Mental health conversations and identity at work

• Employees who are less comfortable talking about their mental health at work are more likely to report feeling burnout and their mental health suffering because of work.
  • The same is true for managers who feel their workplace isn’t giving them the proper resources to discuss mental health.
• Among employees who say they would be uncomfortable sharing about their mental health at work, many cite stigma, lack of communication and retaliation as key reasons why.
• The vast majority (86%) of employees say they are satisfied with their ability to be themselves at work. 4 in 5 also say they are satisfied with the emotional support they receive from their coworkers or supervisors on the job.
• Employees who are less comfortable talking about their mental health at work are more likely to report feeling burnout and their mental health suffering because of work. The same is true for managers who feel their workplace isn’t giving them the proper resources to discuss mental health.

 

How the average American employee rates their mental health

• 15% of employees ages 18-29 rated their mental health as “somewhat poor.”
• Entry-level employees are less likely to say their mental health is “very good” compared to the executive-level employees (35% and 48%, respectively).

 

Culture of Caring in American Workplaces:

• About 1 in 4 employees report being dissatisfied with their workplace culture.
• Only 31% of employees say that they are “very satisfied” with the culture within their workplace, with 45% saying they were “somewhat satisfied.”

 

Workplace conversations about mental health

• 74% of full-time employees in the U.S. say it is appropriate to discuss mental health concerns at work, but only 58% say they feel comfortable sharing about their mental health at work.
  • 7 in 10 senior-level employees say they have not received workplace training about how to talk to their team about mental health.
  • 83% of employees agree mental health and well-being training is, or would be, important in creating a positive workplace culture. Most also say various types of mental health training would be helpful for mental health support at work.
  • The largest employers, with 5,000+ employees, are more likely to offer workplace mental health training than those with 100-249 employees (59% and 36%, respectively).
  • Employees in the services or professional services industries are more likely to say it’s appropriate to discuss mental health at work versus those in manufacturing (79% and 74% vs. 67%, respectively). 74% of those in retail say the same.
  • While most workers are comfortable sharing about their mental health at work, they are significantly less comfortable talking about this than other aspects of their life or who they are.
• More than three-quarters of employees say supervisors, HR and senior leadership should be responsible for helping employees feel comfortable discussing mental health at work (86%, 85% and 78%, respectively).
• 78% of direct managers agree they feel prepared to support the mental health of their direct reports. Yet just 32% say they strongly agree.
  • Significantly fewer direct managers, 63%, agree their company provides them with the proper resources to support the mental health of their direct reports. Only one-fifth say they strongly agree.

 

Burnout remains a national concern

• Burnout is a problem, especially among women, young workers and mid-level employees. Proper mental health resources and increased comfort in discussing mental health at work may contribute to lower burnout on the job.
  • A higher share of female employees and employees under age 50 report experiencing feelings of burnout this past year. 54% of mid-level employees say the same, compared to just 40% of entry-level employees.
• Half (52%) of employees reported feeling burned out in the past year because of their job, and 37% reported feeling so overwhelmed it made it hard to do their job.
  • Both “Experienced” and “Manager”-level employees report higher rates of burnout than “Entry”-level employees (54% for both vs. 40%, respectively).
  • 62% of the employees who reported feeling uncomfortable sharing about their mental health also felt burned out because of their job.
• 33% noticed their productivity suffer because of their mental health, and conversely, 36% noticed their mental health suffer because of work demands.
• 34% of employees aged 18-29 and 28% of employees aged 30-49 reported that they considered quitting because of work’s impact on their mental health, while only 21% of employees aged 50-64 said the same.
• 62% of the employees who reported feeling uncomfortable sharing about their mental health also felt burned out because of their job.

 

Access to Services/Care/Support:

 

Mental health care coverage

• The vast majority of employees (92%) say mental healthcare coverage is important to creating a positive workplace culture. This sentiment is held regardless of gender, age, stage in career or managerial status.
• 60% say their employer offers mental healthcare coverage.
  • Retail workers are the least likely group to report receiving mental healthcare coverage through work (42%).
• 1 in 4 employees say they don’t know if their employer offers mental healthcare coverage, indicating a need for more direct communication about what coverage is available.
  • 31% of entry-level employees whose employer offers, or may offer, mental healthcare coverage don’t know how to access their coverage benefit, and another 25% are unsure, meaning fewer than half of entry-level employees who may have this benefit are confident in their ability to access it.
  • Employees who are offered mental health training at work are more likely to say they know how to access mental health care through their work insurance.
• About 1 in 5 say it is hard to find mental health care through their employer that is affordable, in network or available in a timely manner.
  • Women, LGBTQ+ and young employees are often more likely than their counterparts to report it is hard to access mental health care through their employer.
• Nearly 3 in 5 (58%) employees who have employer-sponsored mental health care coverage say it is adequate. However, a significant group (29%) are unsure.
• Access to employer-sponsored mental healthcare coverage and mental health training positively impacts workers’ perceptions of discussing mental health on the job.
  • Employees who are offered mental health trainings are more likely to feel comfortable sharing about their own mental health (15% difference), to feel comfortable listening to others (9% difference) and to believe it is appropriate to discuss mental health at work general (13% difference.)
• Many (31%-46%) report not knowing how hard it is to access mental health care through their employer across various aspects such as location, in-network status, affordability or finding a provider with specific specialties, availability or personal background. Employer mental health training may improve this knowledge gap.
  • Employees who say their employer offers mental health training are more likely to say it is easy to access mental health care through their employer.
• Age, sexual orientation, caregiver status and income all play a role in level of satisfaction with employer-sponsored insurance offerings.
  • Young adults (ages 18-29) are significantly less likely to say they are satisfied with mental healthcare insurance coverage versus older employees
• Fewer employees report being satisfied with their employer-sponsored mental healthcare coverage than their employer-sponsored health insurance coverage (66% vs. 78%, respectively.)

 

Additional mental health supports at work

• 51% say they would use a free, confidential, independent mental health support resource if it was a benefit offered by their employer.
  • Just under 3 in 10 say they don’t know if they would use it.
  • Respondents identifying as Black or Hispanic were more likely to express that they would use such a resource than those identifying as white (60% and 58% vs. 46%, respectively).
  • Females were more likely to respond that they would use such a resource than males (55% vs. 48%, respectively.)

 

Infographic:

 

Infographic: The 2024 NAMI Workplace Mental Health Poll

Resources:

• How to Get Involved with StigmaFree
• Press Release: NAMI Releases Poll Showing Post-Pandemic Workforce Demands More Mental Health Support
• Learn about NAMI’s StigmaFree Workplace Advisory Council
• Poll Topline and Methodology
• Poll Research Slide Deck

 

This NAMI/Ipsos poll was conducted January 4-9, 2024, by Ipsos using the probability-based KnowledgePanel®. This poll is based on a nationally representative probability sample of 2,062 general population adults age 18 or older, who are employed full-time and work at a business or company with at least 100 employees. The survey has a margin of error of ± 2.5 percentage points. Learn more about the poll methodology here.