The number of employees who have taken extended time off for mental health reasons rose 300% from 2017 to 2023, with female and young employees largely driving the increase, according to a ComPsych analysis. "For organizations, there's an opportunity right now to address the root cause of these absences by offering integrated behavioral health programs, including preventative care to support those who are struggling with mental health challenges," says Richard Chaifetz, CEO of ComPsych, which found mental health-related leaves of absence increased by 33% from 2022 to 2023.
According to a new report from HR firm Randstad, the global talent pool could be affected as baby boomers age out of the workforce and birthrates are not sufficient to fill the gap in many parts of the world. Key trends to watch include low unemployment rates, a drive to retain older workers and the continued impact of AI, according to the report.
Every business leader faces times of confusion and falls back on previous strategies to address them, writes Jeff Hunter, CEO of Talentism Inc. Confusion is an opportunity to develop new systems, acquire new staff and skills and realign the organization.
Even though they earn six figures, a new survey finds almost half of tech workers are dissatisfied with their compensation, which averages $111,193 per year. The dissatisfaction could reflect the high rate of layoffs in the industry as companies tighten budgets and shift to AI solutions.
Virtru aims to improve its employees' job satisfaction by not only getting their feedback in annual interviews and quarterly engagement surveys, but by assigning everyone to People Team members who give employees an opportunity to further open up about work, says Conley Henderson McIntyre, vice president of people for the data encryption provider. "Employees will speak honestly about their experiences if they feel they can do so without retribution," says McIntyre.
Two editors and a project manager once came to me about a custom content project that we were doing. They told me that the client had become extremely difficult, almost to the point of verbal abuse. “She’s mad that we won’t include some research she sent,” the project manager explained.
I reviewed the research in question and the emails between my team and the client. I was stunned. The client had indeed been insulting and condescending. I also understood why my editors had responded as they did to her requests, including the one about the research. There were legal issues to consider. My team had done what they were supposed to do.
And that’s what I said to the client when I responded to her email. I confirmed that the information she received from the editors and project manager was correct. I also let her know that we were consulting our legal team to find out what options we had with the research, but that we could not include the data in the form she had requested. My tone was friendly and professional, but firm.
Always support your people, said Delta Airlines CEO Ed Bastian in today’s Leadership & Development story. In an interview with Jason Aten, Bastian talked about how he does this with his workforce.
"We've got 100,000 employees, and when I travel, I make sure I'm accessible and visible," Bastian said. He also makes himself available via email to employees. “[T]hey can send me an email and that I will get them a response right away to whatever challenge or question or whatever they may be. They'll send me something, and in 10 minutes, they'll get a note back from me….And it's always fun doing that.”
Taking care of your people is the cornerstone of a healthy organizational culture, I’ve learned. They need to know that their leaders are on their side and available to listen when it’s important. The best leaders I’ve worked for excelled in these skills.
How do you show your employees that you support them?
