More Than Half (52%) of Employed Americans Believe Their Employer Is Not Doing Enough to Support Their Mental Health as Global Crises Fare On

A new Blueboard/Harris Poll study reveals that more than two in five employed Americans (44%) say their motivation to do their job is heavily impacted by current global events

SAN FRANCISCO, May 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- A new U.S. study conducted online by The Harris Poll, among over 950 employed adults on behalf of Blueboard, an innovator in the employee recognition and rewards space, reveals a gap between the levels of stress that employees are feeling and the mental health support companies are offering in light of global crises such as COVID-19, the invasion in Ukraine, and climate change.

The study shows that 68% of employed Americans say thinking about current global events has a negative impact on their mental health, with 11% claiming a major negative impact. Furthermore, half of employed Americans (50%) say thinking about current global events has a negative impact on their work performance.

"It's no surprise that recent global crises have caused major levels of stress for employed Americans. And while conversations around mental health have become less stigmatized, this study shows that employees are still not receiving the support they need from their employers," said Kevin Yip, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer at Blueboard. "Employees are speaking up about their needs and expect their employers to treat them as whole human beings, rather than just a number. With May being Mental Health Awareness Month, it's critical for companies to show their employees that they care about what they're experiencing and provide support that's tailored to their unique needs."

A strong majority of employed (full-time or part-time) Americans (93%) spend time thinking about current global events and over four in five (86%) reflect on current global events once a week or more. In fact, more than three out of four employed Americans (77%) say they think about current global events several times a week or more and over half (52%) do so once a day or more.

And yet, just 29% of employed Americans say that their employer has increased their mental health support due to the potential stress related to current global events, while almost a third (31%) say their employer does not offer any benefits for their mental health.

Over two-thirds of employed Americans (68%) feel that companies should offer extra mental health benefits to their employees due to potential stress related to current global events. Employed women are more likely than employed men to agree with this statement (75% vs. 62%).

Just over half of employed Americans (52%) believe that their employer is not doing enough to support employees' mental health with the potential stress related to current global events. More than two in five employed Americans (44%) say their motivation to do their job is heavily impacted by current global events.

To learn more about what this study revealed, check out the full report here.

Survey methodology: This survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Blueboard from April 19-21, 2022, among 952 adults ages 18+ who are employed full/part time. The sampling precision of Harris online polls is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval. For this study, the sample data is accurate to within + 2.8 percentage points using a 95% confidence level.

About Blueboard
Blueboard is the experiential rewards platform of choice for the world's most loved employers. We make it easy for companies to give experiential employee rewards, incentives, and gifts—from one-of-a-kind to once-in-a-lifetime experiences (think skydiving, dining through Michelin stars, learning to blow glass, or chasing the Northern Lights). We support enterprise workforces across 70 countries and partner with hundreds of Best Places to Work including Abbott's Diabetes Care, Mixpanel, Segment, Glassdoor, Shake Shack, GoPro, and Ubisoft to help them celebrate their people in a more meaningful way. Learn more at Blueboard.com.

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SOURCE Blueboard Inc