Why Are We All So Sad?

Notes on an anxious workforce.

Research by the Social Market Foundation shows that happy employees are around 12% more productive than their unhappy counterparts. Happy employees generally require fewer sick days or work breaks; happy employees have a lower burnout rate meaning team attrition and role turnover is reduced; happy employees treat customers better resulting in satisfied customers and successful interactions; happy employees care about their work, in fact, happy salespeople produce approximately 40% more profit.

But let’s bring this back down to earth a bit, it’s not all about the money after all! Over a third of UK workers claim they would take a hit of £5000 to their salary to be in a job that better supported their wellbeing. In our current economic climate, where anyone who’s half tuned in to the *bad vibes* coming from our government can tell that we’re headed for crisis, this statistic highlights that perhaps it’s not a financial crash we should be worried about, but a crash of morale.

Since the pandemic, the UK workforce has been hit with a serious inability to cope. Of the organisations interviewed by The Social Market, over half of long-term sick leave was put down to stress, depression or anxiety. It is undeniable that the pandemic saw a sizable shift in the way many people work. A 2022 article by The Guardian notes that logged working hours increased by around 2 hours over the course of the pandemic and have not returned to pre-pandemic levels. This means that the average work week is now 25% longer than in 2019. I struggle to see who benefits from this system we have created. If employees feel overworked and undervalued, and 2 in 5 company owners say they struggle with depression, anxiety or exhaustion, who stands to gain? And what can we as employers, employees, managers, colleagues, or friends do to combat this epidemic of unhappiness? 

I am a strong advocate – and a good case study! – for work-life balance. I work a nine-day fortnight. I work an hour longer each day – which most people are apparently doing anyway! – and then have every other Monday off. What might be more controversial is that every employee at my work comes into the office every single day. Humans are inherently social beings, and happy people can do amazing things. Even when things get tricky, we always have each other - we would do well to remember that.