Growing up in Singapore, I was always aware of the emphasis placed on hard work and excellence. It's a part of our culture, something ingrained in us from a young age. We're raised to believe that success comes through hard work and that the only way to succeed is to be the best. While this attitude has undoubtedly helped Singapore become the prosperous city-state that it is today, it also comes with a downside: intense pressure and stress. In the competitive job landscape of Singapore, everyone is an overachiever and a perfectionist, which adds layers of stress to our already demanding lives.
I saw this first hand when my father would come home from work exhausted and stressed. His muscle memory was to check his work email even when he wasn't at the office, a sign of how the demands of the job followed him home. I always wondered if this constant stress was not only unhealthy for his mental health but also unproductive for his work. This led me to ponder the broader impact of workplace stress on mental health and productivity.
Workplace stress is a significant issue that affects millions of people worldwide. Its consequences can lead to depression, lack of motivation, reduced focus, insomnia, and decreased teamwork, which can essentially decrease a firm's productive capacity, especially when happening on a mass scale. Causes of this stress could be financial anxiety, health of family members, changes in daily routine, or working in isolation. Working in isolation was exacerbated by the recent COVID-19 pandemic, which forced most of the labor force to work-from-home.
It's essential to address this issue because prioritizing the well-being of employees can help businesses reach their full potential. The global scale of this issue is vast, with more than half the world's population in the labor force currently. The World Health Organization has developed guidelines on mental health at work and has also collaborated with the International Labour Organization on a policy brief for this.
The most appalling part is that those with severe mental health conditions due to workplace stress are largely excluded from work instead of companies implementing policies to safeguard their employees' mental health. This is contradicted by universal leave policies for employees. There has always been a constant need for more paid leave days as it has become a perception that more leave days to reduce stress will help to improve productivity at work.
Going forward, it's crucial to create a safe work environment to increase overall mood and happiness in the corporate setting, reducing the need for more leave days. Work-related mental health conditions are preventable by giving workers a healthy working environment. Further initiatives that could be taken include programs that effectively address stress like mindfulness, relaxation, yoga, and encouraging exercise. Intervention programs like cognitive-behavioral therapy for stress management could help with early identification. Although there are systems and channels available in companies through which employees could voice their concerns, these could be made more readily available and advertised more to the organization as a whole.
It's also essential to address the stigma around asking for help or taking help when one is undergoing high stress. Often employees choose not to indulge in therapy or counseling as they fear they may appear weak in front of their superiors and be neglected for opportunities or higher pay. Creating a culture where asking for help is encouraged, and support is readily available can go a long way in reducing workplace stress and improving mental health and productivity.
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