3 ways to nurture your employees’ mental well-being: ‘It builds that trust in them that you have their back’

Employees want healthier work environments, specifically those that prioritize their mental health . Nearly all workers polled in the American Psychological Association’s 2023 Work in America Survey (92%) said it’s very or somewhat important to them to work for an organization that values their emotional and psychological well-being. Yet 77% reported having experienced work-related stress in the last month, and 43% worried that telling their employer about a mental health condition would have a negative impact on them in the workplace.

When employees suffer, so too does business. Untreated depression, for example, has cost the U.S.

economy more than $51 billion in absenteeism from work and lost productivity, according to nonprofit advocacy group Mental Health America. But what exactly makes a workplace healthy? How can employers nurture employees’ mental well-being in ways that foster both company morale and the bottom line? “When you think of a healthy workplace environment, you’re just looking to create a space for your employees where they feel heard and supported,” Dr. Asima Ahmad, cofounder and chief medical officer of Carrot Fertility , said Monday during a panel discussion at Fortune ’s Brainstorm Health conference in Dana Point, Calif.

“That could be through health care benefits, that could be through other benefits, it could be through resources that are available on site.” She added, “You invest in your employees and it builds that trust in them .