By Paula Allen
Global Leader and VP of Research, Insights and Strategic Communications, TELUS Health
In Europe today, more than 35 per cent of employees are facing high mental health risk, and 43 per cent face moderate mental health risk. Anxiety and isolation remain pervasive, with nearly one in three (29 per cent) of workers across the continent saying their mental health is negatively impacting work productivity.
From the United States to the United Kingdom, from Singapore to South Korea, the story is similar. Fatigue, the inability to balance family with work, financial stressors and economic instability are among the forces creating unprecedented strain on the global workforce. And that’s showing up in productivity issues, absenteeism and turnover.
How do we know all this? Since 2017, we've tracked these patterns through our TELUS Health Mental Health Index (MHI), a tool we pioneered to analyse workforce mental health globally. Our findings are designed to give you clarity on how workers are actually doing, what’s influencing their wellbeing, and where stressors are rising – so you can act strategically. We know forward-thinking organisations don't just need narrow, retrospective data. You need the ability to see what’s happening with all workers, in a timely manner, and understand trends so you can take clear steps that work. And that starts with measuring what matters to both your business and your people.
Most leaders aren't questioning whether our workforce is stressed. Over the last five years, we’ve seen disruption on nearly every level – from job booms and busts to geopolitical instability, disrupted industries, unprecedented digital transformation, and GenAI's rapid restructuring of how we work.
Gallup's 2025 State of the Global Workplace report reveals that declining engagement cost the world US$438 billion last year alone. Globally, the World Health Organisation estimates that 12 billion working days are lost every year due to depression and anxiety, amounting to about US$1 trillion per year in lost productivity.
In addition, prolonged stress is linked to serious physical health problems such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and chronic musculoskeletal disorders.
When stress isn't identified and addressed early, it becomes cumulative – building until employees reach physical, emotional and mental exhaustion. That's burnout. And unlike the flu, it doesn't just go away after a few weeks. Burnout is prevented and resolved by making real changes, including strategic support systems, building trust and improving organisational culture.
The McKinsey Health Institute estimates enhanced employee wellbeing could unlock up to US$11.7 trillion in economic global value through reduced absenteeism, lower healthcare costs and stronger productivity.
The challenge is identifying where stress is building before it shows up in your business metrics.
The trouble is, stress isn't one thing, and it doesn't affect everyone the same way. It can stem from workload, financial pressure, caregiving, sleep disruption, lack of recognition, or psychological safety, to name a few triggers. It can also differ across demographics and regions. Without visibility into these patterns, leaders are left guessing how best to respond.
That's why we built the Mental Health Index. Every quarter, we survey people who are currently employed across 12 countries and regions, including Canada, the U.S., the UK, Europe and Asia-Pacific. The data reflects the makeup of each region's workforce by age, gender, industry and location. This provides a representative benchmark.
Unlike many tools, we measure how people are actually doing – whether they can focus, sleep, manage pressure and perform – not just whether they’re satisfied at work. The surveys capture personal and workplace stressors like financial pressure, isolation and workload. Using a validated response scoring system, we turn individual responses into point values that create a single 0-100 mental health score that measures risk levels to your organisation:
Because we track the same measures continuously, we see patterns early.
Each quarter, we examine timely forces, both outside and inside the workplace. External pressures include financial insecurity, caregiving responsibilities and economic instability; while internal factors include workload, manager relationships, psychological safety and recognition.
In July 2024, we examined menopause in the workplace and found, in the United States, that 67 per cent of women feel unprepared and uninformed, leaving them nearly twice as likely to lack optimism and experience depressive symptoms. Other surveys have examined multi-generational workforce dynamics and financial wellbeing impacts. The research follows what's actually affecting people, so you understand where support is needed most.
Different demographic groups experience strain differently. For example:
Women in Europe are 45 per cent more likely than men to feel extreme burnout, and, since the beginning of the year, their mental health scores are six points lower. Younger Europeans are 65 per cent more likely to struggle with motivation than their colleagues over 50; while in the UK, 26 per cent of workers say their mental health is negatively impacting productivity, with younger workers 60 per cent more likely to feel negatively about themselves if they have a mental health issue compared to colleagues over 50.
Understanding these nuances helps leaders design tailored supports that fit, and signals that wellbeing isn’t generic. It’s intentional.
When you understand what people are carrying – financial stress, workload, lack of recognition, isolation – you can step in sooner. With clarity. With compassion. The future belongs to workplaces where wellbeing and performance work together.