A NEW REPORT REVEALS THAT MOST WOMEN CONSIDER MENTAL HEALTH AT WORK HIGHLY IMPORTANT BUT DON'T USE WORKPLACE PROGRAMS

Fear of repercussions and poor quality are among the top reasons

BOSTON, May 1, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- When asked how important mental health is in the workplace, 97.6 percent of women surveyed said it is "very important" or "extremely important," according to a new study released today by the Conferences for Women.

Yet while approximately 8 out of 10 (81.6%) said their employers offer mental health programs or initiatives, 6 out of 10 (60.2%) said they do not take advantage of them.

The first annual Conferences for Women report, "Women and the Health & Well-being Gap in the Workplace," was released today, the first day of Mental Health Awareness Month.

The Conferences for Women is the nation's largest network of women's conferences, attracting more than 55,000 women to its annual events in Austin, Boston, Philadelphia, and Silicon Valley and thousands more at the National Conference, held virtually during Women's History Month. A women-led, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, the Conferences for Women is dedicated to amplifying women's influence in the workplace and beyond.

A total of 4,385 women nationwide responded to the Conferences for Women survey. Most were college-educated and held management or leadership positions. Specifically, 43% held bachelor's degrees and 44.3% graduate degrees. And 33.4% held middle management positions, 14.8% held senior management positions, and 9.7 were executives or business owners.

Among the 60% of women who said they did not use employer-sponsored mental health offerings, there were six primary reasons given. Fear of repercussions and perceived poor quality were tied for the #1 reason. 

As some said:

"Poor mental health is frequently viewed as a sign of weakness or a defect (despite what some companies say), so I'd rather not have anything pertaining to my mental health linked to something within my company."

"These services are used as lip service to justify unethical and uncaring corporate behavior. It's a complete smokescreen."

Respondents also said they did not take advantage of employer offerings because they preferred to use private resources, lacked time to take advantage of them, found them difficult to access or navigate, and believed the problem did not lie with their mental health but with the conditions of the workplace.

Download the report here.

Impact of Women's Conferences on Well-Being 

Of the 3,639 who said they had attended a Conferences for Women event in the past, more than 3 out of 4 (77.9%) said it had positively supported their well-being. 

These events regularly draw top women leaders as keynoters, from Nobel Peace Prize laureates and Pulitzer Prize-winning authors to Academy and Emmy Award-winning actors to CEOs. They also offer practical breakout sessions on leadership, career advancement, and more and abundant networking opportunities.

A study conducted by best-selling author Shawn Achor and published in The Harvard Business Review in 2018 found that attendees of Conferences for Women events were three times more likely to receive a 10% or higher pay increase within one year and were twice as likely to receive a promotion. It also showed that 78% of attendees reported feeling "more optimistic about the future," and 71% said they felt "more connected to others" after attending.

Registration opens today for the 2024 Texas Conference for Women, May 8th for the Pennsylvania Conference for Women, and May 15th for the Massachusetts Conference for Women. The California Conference for Women will be held on February 12, 2025, and a virtual National Conference for Women on March 5, 2025, Women's History Month.

Learn more about the Conferences for Women.

SOURCE The Conferences for Women