Politics, religion, mental health … you probably avoid these topics at work. But while discussing the president or God can ignite disagreements and hurt company culture, not talking about mental health is even worse.

Why? Last year, 89% of global employees experienced at least one mental health challenge—but fewer than half received support, according to a Lyra Health survey. An employee’s mental health can have a major impact on their performance and morale, and leadership must respond. 

Creating an environment that nurtures mental health starts with your leaders, but they may struggle with this sensitive subject. To provide top-tier mental health support, organizations need to first train these leaders to respond to employees’ mental health needs. 

The State of Workplace Mental Health Support  

Employee mental health is worsening for the first time since 2021, according to Lyra Health, and for 28% of U.S. respondents, work-related stress was a top reason. Globally, stress was identified as a primary concern for 44% of respondents.  

The good news is that today’s employees are ready to talk about mental health. The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) found that 75% of Americans want more information and training about mental health and the resources available to them, like the advantages of employee assistance programs.  

Unfortunately, the same survey reports that only 53% know how to access mental health resources at work, and only 20% received training related to symptoms and conditions. This shows a clear gap between the top-tier mental health support employees want and what they’re receiving.  

There’s a communication gap between leadership and employees, too: 45% of benefits leaders told Lyra Health that they offer mental health resources, but only 29% of employees knew they had resources available to them. 

Employers need to step up. Employees are asking for more acknowledgement of the importance of mental health, and wellness programs to help them with work/life balance and burnout. Whether they find those things influences their performance and worker retention.  

Why Mental Health Support Matters for High-Performing Teams 

Mental health support is more than a nice-to-have; it’s a must-have for any organization that wants to reach its full potential. Research shows that mental stress harms creativity and innovation. Productivity is lost as well, with around 12 billion work days lost to depression and anxiety globally every year.  

Employees, especially younger employees, won’t hesitate to leave employers who don’t realize that their mental health is valuable. Lyra Health found that 60% of Gen Z and 55% of Millennials will look for a new job if their employer doesn’t provide top-tier mental health support.  

When an employee is dealing with poor mental health, the consequences often snowball to the rest of their team. If that individual leaves for a company with a stronger focus on mental wellness, the team must deal with the staffing shortage. When individuals stay but are unfocused, unproductive, or often absent due to poor mental health, their team is left in the lurch.  

You can likely imagine how easily these difficulties spread throughout an entire company. There’s a reason Lyra Health found that companies with comprehensive mental health benefits see high ROI and increases in productivity. When employees are feeling their best, they do their best work, and the result is high-performing teams.  

Building an organization that provides top-tier mental health support starts with developing a more welcoming culture. To do that, an organization first needs to cultivate welcoming leaders.  

How Leadership Coaching Contributes to Positive Mental Health 

The World Health Organization lists leadership training as a core recommendation for protecting mental health at work. With it, leaders can better understand job stressors and create a culture of respect that encourages struggling employees to seek the help they need.  

For training that will have a long-term impact, many organizations turn to leadership coaching. Coaching can foster the mindsets and beliefs that create bridges between managers and peers who need top-tier mental health support.  

While most employees recognize that their managers can’t solve mental health problems, they seek support in the form of compassionate listening, emotional intelligence, and respect for their needs. These are all skills taught in transformational leadership coaching, which helps leaders develop positive mindsets, self-awareness, and the ability to communicate more openly.  

Coaching can also teach leaders how to create a culture of psychological safety for high-performing teams, meaning an environment where employees feel comfortable speaking up about their opinions or needs. NAMI found that while 81% of employees feel comfortable telling a friend at work about psychological challenges, only 57% feel comfortable talking to their managers, and 39% with HR.  

The status quo in most organizations clearly doesn’t make room for psychological safety. Coaching can help leaders adopt the interpersonal skills that drive it.  

Finally, training can help leaders meaningfully address mental health concerns in the workplace. This includes developing policies to balance workloads and adopting top wellness programs. Leaders may also want to consider adding employee assistance programs, which offer short-term counseling or mental health referrals. There are many advantages of employee assistance programs, ranging from increased productivity to decreased stress, and leadership training can help managers communicate these benefits to their teams.  

According to a survey from UKG, managers impact employees’ mental health more than their doctors or therapists, and roughly the same amount as their spouses. With the help of effective leadership coaching, this impact could be for the better.  

Embracing a Cultural Shift Toward Better Mental Health 

Mental health is slowly becoming destigmatized at work, but there’s still a long way to go. While most employees recognize the importance of their mental health, few organizations offer the top-tier mental health support employees want.  

This cultural shift starts at the top. When leaders receive the coaching they need to better support mental health, they can build workplaces where all employees thrive. 

Contact us to learn how our proven coaching methods in transformational leadership can get you started.