Cork expert says we must take care of mental health of Irish workforce

Nearly one in four employees in Ireland (24%) took mental health leave in the past two years, and now a UCC professor is urging organisations to treat employee mental health as a fundamental right.

Professor Ella Arensman, head of the school of public health at University College Cork, was the co-ordinator of a recent systematic review published in the International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, which highlighted gaps in workplace mental health interventions.

The PROSPERH (Positive Mental and Physical Health at Work in a Changing Environment)-led review highlights that organisational level interventions, those targeting working conditions, job design and management practices, can improve employee mental health.

However significantly, the study also highlighted that evidence remains limited and uneven across sectors.

The research found that the strongest evidence for workplace mental health interventions was in the healthcare sector. 

All identified studies on the healthcare sector reported improvements in at least one mental health outcome, including reduced burnout, stress and depressive symptoms.

The findings indicate that organisational change, such as adjusting workloads, improving leadership support, or redesigning work processes, can play a meaningful role in protecting employee wellbeing.

But in contrast, the study found evidence from other sectors remains scarce. Only a small number of studies were identified in industries such as construction and telework based environments, highlighting a significant research gap at a time when psychosocial risks are increasingly recognised across all forms of work.

Ms Arensman, who is also chief scientist with the national suicide research foundation, said:

“The world of work is changing rapidly, and too many workers, especially those in construction, precarious employment roles, and remote settings, are being left behind when it comes to mental and physical health support.

“PROSPERH is building the evidence based tools that employers and policymakers need to act.

"We urge every organisation to treat worker mental and physical health not as an afterthought, but as a fundamental right”.

PROSPERH study co-lead, Dr Eve Griffin, also adjunct professor at the school of public health at University College Cork, added:

“The evidence being gathered emphasises the need for employers to implement effective and sustainable approaches to support both the mental and physical health of their employees.

“When these interventions are implemented in a meaningful way, benefits are seen both for employees and organisations”.

Although some workplace mental health interventions demonstrated positive effects, the review also points to challenges in sustaining improvements over time, raising important questions about the sustainability of workplace mental health strategies and the need for ongoing support rather than one off interventions.

PROSPERH (Positive Mental and Physical Health at Work in a Changing Environment) is a Horizon Europe funded project developing and validating an innovative multi-level workplace health intervention.