More than a third (36 per cent) of Canadian employees say they feel overwhelmed with responsibilities or commitments, according to Telus Health’s latest mental-health index.
The survey, which polled roughly 3,000 employees, found the average mental-health score was 63.1, virtually unchanged from January (63.2). Anxiety (55.6) continued to be the lowest mental-health sub-score, followed by isolation (59.9), depression (61.2), work productivity (62.7), optimism (63.9) and financial risk (67.9). General psychological health (71.4) remained the most favourable mental-health measure.
Workers who said they feel overwhelmed with responsibilities reported an average mental-health score of 48.1, nearly 29 points lower than workers who said they aren’t feeling overwhelmed by their commitments (76.8).
Read: 40% of Canadian employees under constant stress: survey
When asked about the sources of workplace stress, employees cited high workload (30 per cent), work-life balance (24 per cent), insufficient resources or support (19 per cent), job insecurity (18 per cent), a lack of recognition or feedback (17 per cent) and poor communication (17 per cent).
Those who cited job insecurity as a source of stress had an average mental-health score of 50.6, while workers who reported no work stress (26 per cent) had an average score of 75.5.
The survey noted employees aged 50 and older are nearly three-times more likely than workers aged 40 and younger to report no work stress, while non-managers are 60 per cent more likely than managers to report they aren’t stressed.
Read: Canadian workers’ mental health on the decline, driven by financial anxiety: survey