Health Assured’s take on the link between financial stability and mental health

1. Who are Health Assured and what services do you provide?

Health Assured are occupational health experts. Their services focus on issues surrounding mental health in the workplace. Services they offer include: Employee assistance programmes, trauma management, health assessments, stress counselling and more.

2. Why do you support the living wage campaign?

This campaign and others like it helps to put additional pressure on other businesses and the government to not only recognise the need for fair wages but to also take steps to addressing issues relating to the current minimum wage.

3. What is the impact of the living wage on mental health and the workplace environment?

There’ve been many studies on the links between financial worries, mental health and the working environment. According to Mind, a mental health charity, around one in four people in the workplace experience some sort of mental health issue every year. And according to mentalhealth.org.uk, absences due to mental health issues in the work place is said to be costing the UK economy over £26 billion every year.

A major hindrance to the mental wellbeing of employees lies in their financial stability. Money worries can have a huge effect on the wellbeing of your staff, research by Salary Finance suggests that employees who’re experiencing money worries are 3.8 times more likely to suffer from anxiety, stress and panic attacks and 4.8 time more likely to experience depression which when left unaddressed can have detrimental effects on their mental health.

Research by Thriving to Work and commissioned by the prime minister in 2017 show that there’re visible consequences for employees experiencing constant worries about their financial position. Effects include; struggling to concentrate, feeling increase pressure, reduced motivation and in some cases lack of sleep.

4. Do you have any thing you would like to promote about your organisation?

Health Assured offers employee assistance programmes to help employees deal with personal problems (such as finances, relationships, etc.) that might impact their ability to work or their work performance.