Summary: Employers can improve mental health in the workplace by taking concrete steps to promote mental health. Meetings and check-ins help, but policies and procedures that prioritize mental health and wellness are more valuable to employees.
Key Points:
- Employers need to view positive mental health as an asset to their organization
- Employees suggest management needs specific, mental health-focused training to improve mental health in the workplace
- Addressing stigma and discrimination are primary concerns for employees
World Mental Health Day and Workplace Mental Health
Last October on World Mental Health Day (WMHD), the World Health Organization (WHO) selected a theme that’s important for most working adults in the U.S.: how to improve mental health in the workplace.
The Secretary-General of the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH), Gabriel Ivbijaro, explains the choice:
“In general, even though employment is positive, some working patterns can be detrimental for health when they lead to increased stressors including long work hours, night shifts, and weekend work when there are not enough rest periods, or [work that involves] being around harmful substances. Such stressors are associated with burn-out and other stress- related mental health problems, absenteeism and presenteeism, and reductions in productivity with a personal and societal cost.”
As we move further into 2025, current events swirl around issues related to the economy, employment, taxation, health insurance, and a wide variety of issues relevant to the intersection of mental health and the workplace. In this article, we’ll share information on how employers can create conditions in the workplace that promote positive mental health.
We’ll start by looking at the latest data on mental health in the U.S. to clarify our need to prioritize and improve mental health in the workplace.
Mental Health in the U.S.: Facts and Figures
The latest reliable and vetted facts on mental health in the U.S. appear in the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), published annually by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The sample size – over 70,000 participants each year – is large enough for us to make population-level generalizations from the data they collect, confirm, analyze and publish for the general public.
Here’s the latest information on mental illness and depression in the U.S.
2023 NSDUH: Any Mental Illness (AMI) and Serious Mental Illness (SMI)
- Any Mental Illness (AMI):
- 18+: 22.8%
- 18-25: 33.8%
- 26-49: 29.2%
- 50+: 14.1%
Compared to 2022, those figures show a 0.8 decrease for all people age 18+, a 2.4% decrease for people 18-25, a slight decrease of 0.2% for people 26-49, and a slight increase of 0.2% for people 50+.
- Serious Mental Illness (ASMI):
- 18+: 5.7%
- 18-25: 10.3%
- 26-49: 7.9%
- 50+: 2.4%
Compared to 2022, those figures show a 0.3 decrease for all people age 18+, a 1.3% decrease for people 18-25, a slight increase of 0.3% for people 26-49, and a decrease of 0.4% for people 50+.
Now let’s take a look at the data on depression.
2023 NSDUH: Major Depressive Episode (MDE) and MDE with Severe Impairment
- Major Depressive Episode (MDE):
- 18+: 8.5%
- 18-25: 17.5%
- 26-49: 10.2%
- 50+: 4.5%
Compared to 2022, those figures show a 0.3 decrease for all people age 18+, a 3.6% decrease for people 18-25, an increase of 0.5% for people 26-49, and a slight increase of 0.1% for people 50+.
- Major Depressive Episode With Severe Impairment:
- 18+: 5.9%
- 18-25: 12.9%
- 26-49: 7.4%
- 50+: 2.7%
Compared to 2022, those figures show a 0.3 decrease for all people age 18+, a 1.8% decrease for people 18-25, an increase of 0.5% for people 26-49, and a decrease of 0.4% for people 50+.
Those figures show us why mental health providers always remind people this one thing: if you have a diagnosis for a clinical mental health disorder, you’re not alone. Tens of millions of people in the U.S. receive diagnoses for mental health disorders every year.
How Employers Can Help Improve Mental Health in the Workplace
The Mental Health Foundation of the United Kingdom is a non-profit organization created to help individuals, families, and in particular – employers – prioritize mental health in the workplace. They’ve identified the following four ways employers can improve mental health in the workplace, for employees and employers:
1. View mental health and wellbeing among employees as assets to your organization:
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- Develop systems to protect and improve mental health, and support those in distress an crisis.
- Create a work culture where mental wellness opportunities like mindfulness and exercise are encouraged and promoted.
- Survey staff regularly to monitor mental health and wellness
2. Support mental health awareness among management:
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- Create options for management to engage in training to support employees with mental health disorders.
- Promote access to and awareness of any established programs within the organization to promote mental health
- Identify and recognize that people in management with lived experience with mental health disorders are a powerful asset to the organization.
3. Address stigma and discrimination:
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- Proactively work to identify and eliminate stigma around mental health and eliminate discrimination against people with mental health disorders.
- Establish safe systems whereby people who witness or experience mental health stigma and discrimination can inform management without fear of reprisal or further stigmatization.
4. Support employees and colleagues by checking in. When talking about mental health, three things are important:
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- Make sure there’s adequate time to check in without feeling rushed. If now is not good, schedule a good time.
- Ensure the check-in occurs in a private place where the employee/colleague feels safe.
- Engage in active listening. Make eye contact. Listen to understand, rather than respond/fix. Reflect back what they say, and offer any appropriate support available, including resources such as websites or phone numbers.
- Establish peer support programs for and by employees with lived experience with mental health issues.
If every employer around the country followed these guidelines, we’d improve the overall health and wellness of the entire nation. One thing about these guidelines is that they’re not extreme in any way: they’re common-sense suggestions that can work for the good of both the employee and the employer.
In business language, that’s a win-win: all upside, no downside.
Gianna Melendez
Jodie Dahl, CpHT