How to solve the employee engagement collapse

Prioritising Wellbeing at
Work: Solving the Crisis in Employee Engagement

Workplaces
worldwide are facing a severe crisis in employee engagement and well-being.
Declining satisfaction, increasing rates of burnout, and unprecedented mental
health challenges highlight the urgency for businesses and HR professionals to
step up. The good news? Tangible steps can improve employee health, company
culture, and productivity.

Using the
latest data from the United Kingdom and the United States, this blog unpacks
key challenges, examines limitations in current wellness strategies, and
proposes actionable solutions to improve workplace wellbeing.

The Alarming Decline in Employee Engagement

United Kingdom

Engagement: As of 2023, only 10% of UK
workers are engaged in their jobs. This disengagement costs the UK economy
over £257 billion annually, equivalent to 11.3% of GDP. This statistic alone could explain the UK’s productivity problem.

Job Satisfaction: A 2023 survey revealed
that only 39% of employees believe their salary fairly reflects their
skills. Additionally, more than 1 in 10 employees expressed a lack of
confidence in their company’s leadership.

Personal Wellbeing: Between April 2022 and
March 2023, happiness ratings dropped, and 23.4% of adults reported high
levels of anxiety.

United States

Engagement: Employee engagement in the
U.S. fell to its lowest level in a decade, with only 31% of employees
engaged in 2024. Younger employees (under 35) show the most
significant drop.

Happiness: Employee satisfaction scores dipped 5% between June 2023 and June 2024, according to
Bamboohr.

Overall Wellbeing: Gallup reported that only 34%
of U.S. employees consider themselves thriving across life domains.

Impact on Businesses

This
decline in engagement and happiness isn’t just a personal issue; it’s a
business challenge. Low engagement leads to reduced productivity, higher
absenteeism, and high turnover rates.

For HR
professionals and business leaders, understanding these trends is the first step in
turning the tide.

Why Current Wellness Programs Fall Short

The
workplace wellness industry is booming, yet the gap between investments in
wellness programs and employee satisfaction persists, and is actually growing!

The corporate wellness
market was valued at approximately $59.91 billion in 2023, and projections suggest it will reach $130.03 billion by 2034.

Over 51% of companies
with 50+ employees now offer wellness programs, such as mindfulness sessions,
fitness perks, and mental health workshops.

The Disconnect

Despite
this growth, studies show limited success in improving employee wellbeing:

Many programs fail to
address systemic workplace issues like heavy workloads, long hours, and
lack of autonomy.

According to The Guardian,
these programs focus on surface-level issues and often “miss the mark”
when solving burnout-related challenges.

What Really Works for Employee Wellbeing?

To truly
enhance well-being, organisations must go deeper than surface-level wellness
initiatives. This starts by addressing core aspects of workplace culture and
empowering employees.

1. Building a Culture of Psychological Safety

Psychological
safety allows employees to express themselves without fear of judgment or
retaliation. It encourages innovation, builds trust, and drives engagement.

Encourage open feedback and
dialogue without fear of punishment.

Train leaders to foster
inclusive, empathetic environments.

Celebrate team efforts,
mistakes, and learning moments.

Build a culture around celebrating success rather than politics and hierarchy.

2. Giving Employees More Autonomy

Micromanagement
undermines productivity and confidence. Employees thrive when they have control
over their decisions and their day.

Implement flexible work
hours and remote work options.

Trust employees with
decision-making and project ownership.

Set clear objectives but
allow them to determine their preferred path.

3. Fostering Resilience and Self-Leadership

Building
resilience to stress empowers employees to take charge of their personal
well-being and professional development.

Invest in training programs
that teach time management, emotional intelligence, and conflict
resolution.

Provide resources for
personal growth, such as access to leadership podcasts, online courses,
or mentorship programs.

Encourage self-care
initiatives and prevent overwork.

4. Reshaping Work to Provide Meaning

Employees
perform better when their work aligns with their values and feels purposeful.

‘If you find a why, then you can bear any how’

Victor
Frankl ‘Man’s search for meaning’

Help employees see how
their role contributes to broader business goals.

Focus on recognition
programs that celebrate results, effort, and creativity.

Bring employees into
decision-making processes to deepen their connection to the company.

5. Prioritising Mental Health Support

Leaders
can’t ignore the growing mental health crisis. Implementing long-lasting
support structures shows employees you’re serious about their well-being.

Provide access to
therapists through company benefits (this helped me enormously in my
career).

Actively make space for
mental health days (separate from PTO).

Introduce peer-support
networks for anonymous discussions.

But the truth is that with
mental health, there are no quick wins. The true quick win is having
patience – which we seem to be running out of globally.

6. Embedding Self-Compassion

Psychologist
Kristin Neff’s research emphasises self-compassion as a foundation for
well-being:

Self-Kindness – Encourage employees to
treat themselves with the same care they show others.
Common Humanity – Help teams understand
that mistakes and failures are universal.
Mindfulness – Create spaces for
reflection, like workplace mindfulness programs tied to real issues.

Looking to the Future of Workplace Wellbeing

The
troubling statistics surrounding workplace happiness and engagement clearly show the challenges ahead. However, they also illuminate a profound
opportunity for organisations willing to invest in meaningful changes.

Why the Right Culture Change Matters

The real
power lies not in restating the importance of well-being but in solving the root causes of dissatisfaction:

Reduce high workloads and
unreasonable KPIs.

Build environments of mutual
respect.

Give importance to mental
health benefits as much as traditional pay raises.

By
addressing the core human needs of autonomy, purpose, and belonging, businesses
can move from mere wellbeing programs to fostering a workplace where
individuals and businesses thrive.

How Can We Solve the Crisis in Employee Wellbeing?

To act:

Audit your workplace culture
to identify key areas of improvement.

Update leadership training
to emphasise empathy, flexibility, and psychological safety.

Focus on facilitating, not
micromanaging.
Empower employees to become co-creators of their wellbeing.

Use data to measure and
assess engagement and wellbeing metrics regularly.

A Bleak Future for Workplace Wellbeing

Over the
past 10 to 15 years, mental health challenges have dramatically escalated in
both the UK and the US, affecting adults and young people at alarming levels.
The future of employee wellbeing is intertwined with this growing crisis.

Consider
these worrying trends:

The rise in mental health
challenges among youth will inevitably lead to young workers entering the
workforce with significant mental health burdens.

Mental health services are
stretched thin, making it difficult for those in need to receive adequate
care in a timely manner.

Stigma surrounding mental
health issues still persists, discouraging many employees from seeking
support.

Addressing
wellbeing isn’t just an ethical priority; it’s a business imperative as
struggling employees lead to decreased productivity, higher turnover, and
increased absenteeism.

United Kingdom Statistics

The
mental health crisis in the UK paints a stark picture:

Youth Mental Disorders: Between 2017 and 2022,
probable mental disorders among 17 to 19-year-olds rose drastically from
10.1% to 25.7% (CYPMHC).

Crisis Referrals: From April 2023 to March
2024, urgent adult referrals to crisis mental health teams in England more
than doubled, rising from 1,400 to 3,063 (The Guardian). This surge
highlights the strained capacity of mental health services.

Rising Suicide Rates: England and Wales recorded
6,069 suicides in 2023, the highest rate since 1999. Male suicide rates
reached 17.4 per 100,000, while female suicide rates hit 5.7 per 100,000,
the highest figure since 1994 (ONS).

The
Prince’s Trust Youth Index further underlines the growing despair among UK
youth, revealing that happiness and confidence are at record lows.

United States Statistics

The US is
grappling with similar challenges, with concerning trends across key metrics:

Depression Rates: The prevalence of
depression rose from 7.3% in 2015 to 9.2% by 2020 (PMC).

Suicidal Thoughts in Young
Adults:
Between 2008 and 2017, the percentage of young adults experiencing
suicidal thoughts or related outcomes surged by 47% (APA).

Youth Suicide Rate: Between 2014 and 2024, the
suicide rate for Americans aged 10–24 increased by 56% (Wikipedia).

These
figures underscore an urgent and growing crisis that businesses cannot ignore.

The Ripple Effects on Employees and Businesses

A Mounting Challenge

The
escalation in youth mental health issues foreshadows significant ramifications
for the workplace. Employees entering the workforce already struggle with
anxiety, depression, and burnout. Without intervention, these challenges carry
over into productivity levels, workplace morale, and overall business success.

Quick Fixes Won’t Solve This

Efforts
to address the crisis often rely on superficial solutions such as mindfulness
apps, wellness days, or desk yoga sessions. While these measures are helpful,
they rarely address the underlying issues or create lasting change. To make a
meaningful difference, workplaces must adopt holistic approaches that tackle
systemic challenges, provide robust mental health support, and foster genuine
community among employees.

A Personal Perspective on Wellbeing at Work

I speak
from experience. Twenty-seven years ago, I entered recovery from substance
abuse while battling anxiety and depression. The path wasn’t easy, but it
coincided with my career progression and helped me understand the importance of
addressing mental health proactively.

In my ‘recovery
period’, I married, had two children, took an MBA, and moved to the USA for
ten years to build my career. I still consider all of these to be the best
decisions of my life.

Like many
professionals, I’ve faced workplace challenges. But over the years, I’ve built
strategies to live a happy, productive life while maintaining excellent mental
health.

My experience underscores that while the problem is complex, solutions
are achievable. They require effort, support, and understanding on an
individual and organisational level.

“A culture that systematically ignores, devalues, or frustrates the need for self-esteem will sooner or later pay the price in the form of apathy, absenteeism, poor performance, or burnout.”

Nathaniel Branden