Nearly One Third Of Australians Consider A Career Change As Pandemic Upends Professional Future

Morneau Shepell, a leading provider of total wellbeing, mental health and digital mental health services, today released its monthly Mental Health Index™ report, revealing a consistent trend of negative mental health among Australians for the eighth consecutive month. The findings show that pervasive feelings of anxiety and declining optimism continue to impact the wellbeing of Australians.

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The Mental Health Index™ score is -11.1, which is slightly better than October (-11.3) and the highest mental health score since the inception of the Index in April 2020 when it was -17.0. The score measures the improvement or decline in mental health from the pre-2020 benchmark of 75. The Index also tracks sub-scores against the benchmark, measuring financial risk (4.4), psychological health (-4.3), isolation (-11.1), depression (-12.3), workplace productivity (-12.3), optimism (-12.8) and anxiety (-13.0). When compared to the previous month, work productivity, depression, isolation and financial risk showed improvement, but feelings of anxiety and optimism continued to trend downward. Levels of work productivity and financial risk reached their highest point since the inception of the Index.

“As we continue to curb the spread of COVID-19, it is encouraging to see that some aspects of Australians’ mental health are improving, but there is still more we can do to improve mental health scores, which are still well below pre-pandemic levels,” said Jamie MacLennan, managing director, Australia and APAC. “Today, the working population feels as distressed as the most distressed one per cent of Australians prior to the pandemic. Employers must continue to take a proactive and thoughtful approach in expressing support, while also providing the resources that Australians need to navigate their day-to-day lives while under immense mental pressure.”

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Many Australians consider changing careers, despite their employers handling the pandemic well

The pandemic has created both challenges and opportunities for Australians, leading many to consider the future of their personal and professional lives and, in some instances, a change in employment. Overall, 29 per cent of respondents indicated that the pandemic has led them to consider a job or career change. Forty-one per cent of respondents under the age of 40 said they are considering a job/career change, compared to only 17 per cent of respondents over the age of 50 who indicated the same. Additionally, 20 per cent said they are undecided, suggesting a greater proportion of workers may be at risk of turnover.

Since the pandemic started, 14 per cent indicated that their view of their employer worsened and 15 per cent indicated that it became more positive. The majority of employees (71 per cent) believe that their employers are handling health and safety well, compared to only seven per cent of employees that believe it’s been poorly handled. Similarly, 66 per cent of employees believe their employer is handling the use of technology well, 58 per cent of employees believe their employer is handling flexible work hours well and 49 per cent of employees believe their employer is handling work-from-home policies well.

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