Turn mental health into wealth at workplaces

SINGAPORE - In the last two months, I’ve had several conversations with chief executives facing the stark reality of mental health challenges within their organisations.

Two of them had lost colleagues to suicide. Another senior leader had noticed a rise in anxiety among younger employees struggling to cope with the pressures of work. Meanwhile, young talent is leaving in droves from sectors such as law, citing mental health struggles as a key reason.

These stories are not isolated or uncommon.

In Singapore, four in 10 employees report facing high mental health risks, with nearly half experiencing moderate risk. One in three young professionals just entering the workforce may already be struggling with severe symptoms of depression, anxiety or stress.

Despite this, fewer than one in five human resources (HR) professionals say their companies offer comprehensive mental health resources. And when they are available, less than 5 per cent of employees in Singapore with access to these programmes use them, significantly below the regional average of 47 per cent across Asean countries.

This all exacts a cost.

Mental health challenges drain Singapore’s economy by $15.7 billion annually in lost productivity – roughly 3 per cent of gross domestic product. Stress-related illnesses contribute an additional $3.1 billion in losses every year.

There is no doubt that we have a workplace mental health crisis. What if employers and leaders choose to see employee well-being not as a cost or burden, but as a key enabler for growth and success? If health is wealth, why not see “mental wealth” at the workplace as a strategic asset, and create “mental wealth” in our people as their fuel to thrive?

Mental health to ‘mental wealth’: A business imperative

A 2024 study by Oxford University found that organisations with higher levels of employee well-being reported better financial performance, including higher return on assets, greater valuations and greater profits. Companies that invest in well-being saw, on average, a 20 per cent higher return over two years compared with those that did not. These organisations were also more resilient, innovative and better positioned to outperform competitors.

Take DBS Bank. At a dialogue I moderated in 2024, CEO Piyush Gupta, who will step down in March, said that “people are first” at DBS. This philosophy has led the bank to become a global leader in digital banking and one of the most profitable banks in the world. The commitment to people doesn’t just improve the lives of employees – it drives business performance.

Mental health initiatives directly impact employee loyalty; employers that prioritise well-being see a 25 per cent lower turnover rate. Employers that don’t adapt could fall behind in the war for talent, with today’s job seekers attracted to organisations that offer comprehensive mental health programmes.

Companies like Otis and Singtel include mental health and well-being strategies in their corporate disclosures, sending a clear signal to employees, investors and clients alike that they are committed to creating supportive, thriving work environments.

Regulatory pressures are adding to the urgency for action. The Workplace Fairness Bill, passed in January 2025, strengthens protections against discrimination because of mental health conditions. With enforcement starting in 2026, businesses that fail to act could face legal and reputational risks.

Leadership: Driving the culture shift to mental wealth

It’s not enough for boards and CEOs to simply acknowledge the issue of mental health; they must actively create environments where people thrive.

Senior leaders must be the first to prioritise mental wealth in their organisations, and it starts with themselves. They must be well to lead well.

Hence, they must invest in their own well-being, and encourage their teams to do the same. A healthy, engaged CEO can drive innovation, productivity and resilience throughout the organisation, as exemplified by leaders like Professor Tan Eng Chye of the National University of Singapore, Dr Prem Kumar Nair of IHH Healthcare, Mr Patrick Ang of Rajah & Tann, Mr Kelvin Ho of Nomura Singapore and Mr Stephane de Montlivault of Otis.

Leaders play a central role in building a well-being-first culture and ensuring that leadership at all levels can model healthy behaviour, prioritise their own well-being and actively encourage their teams to do the same.

This is critical for creating a culture of psychological safety in which the early signs of mental distress can be recognised.

Integrating mental health into the broader business strategy requires courage, compassion, commitment and clarity from leaders. Employee well-being must be a business outcome, just like customer satisfaction, revenue growth or operational efficiency.

From crisis to culture: Integrating well-being at every level

A truly effective well-being strategy goes beyond surface-level interventions. According to a ground-breaking 2024 study by Oxford University of 46,000 employees, individual-focused interventions like counselling and wellness programmes alone fail to make a significant impact on overall mental well-being.

Instead, creating mental wealth requires a holistic approach that combines multiple interventions and measurements at the organisational, group and individual level, catering to different drivers of employee well-being.

Mental well-being isn’t just for those in crisis – it’s for everyone – and organisations need to build systems that support not just the struggling but also those who are thriving.

Detailing an organisation-wide mental health strategy is beyond the scope of this article, but I would like to share three high-impact levers of change:

1. Job design & workload sustainability

Two-thirds of Singapore’s workforce experience burnout. Research consistently shows that poorly managed workloads are one of the leading causes of burnout and stress-related illnesses. Rethinking job design so it prioritises employee well-being and harnessing operational efficiency with artificial intelligence at the same time can reduce unnecessary stress and create roles that are both fulfilling and sustainable.

2. Supporting employees across life stages

The demands of life, from the financial pressures in early career, to caregiving responsibilities in midlife, and the transition to retirement, take their toll. By supporting employees through these different life stages, organisations can help them better balance work and life demands.

Tailored support can be offered to employees at different stages of life. For example, financial wellness programmes for younger employees, or flexible work arrangements for caregivers, can reduce stress and increase job satisfaction. Through this, employers foster greater loyalty, engagement and well-being, ultimately driving retention and productivity.

Employers can work with community organisations such as Credit Counselling Singapore and Caregivers Alliance to provide such support.

3. Inclusive practices: Building a resilient workforce

In Singapore, only 23 per cent of organisations hire individuals with mental health conditions, far lower than in Thailand (87 per cent) and Vietnam (86 per cent). This is often due to stigma, lack of awareness and concerns over the accommodations required. Yet, inclusive hiring isn’t just the right thing to do – it’s an investment in the future of the organisation.

Employers risk losing valuable talent – especially those returning from mental health challenges – by not offering adequate mental health support. Inclusive hiring recognises the potential in individuals with mental health conditions and creates an environment where they can thrive.

Farsighted return-to-work strategies include flexible hours, adjusted workloads and access to tailored mental health resources.

As the founder of Hush TeaBar, a social enterprise dedicated to hiring Deaf individuals and people in recovery, I’ve witnessed at first hand the value that employees with lived experience bring to the table. It may be challenging to overcome communication barriers or provide support to them during difficult times, but their diversity and empathy have been invaluable over the past decade.

Supporting SMEs in creating mental wealth

In Singapore, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) account for 70 per cent of the workforce, but often lack the resources to support employee well-being. HR departments in SMEs are often stretched thin, with staff well-being being a secondary concern.

To support SMEs in building mental wealth, the Government and the industry should consider creating a Chief HR Officer-as-a-Service. This would provide SMEs with the expertise they need to integrate employee well-being into their business strategies, just as the Chief Technology Officer-as-a-Service initiative under the Infocomm Media Development Authority has helped SMEs go digital.

Professional bodies and trade associations/chambers of commerce can support their members by pooling resources, as the Singapore Academy of Law has, by offering mental health benefits with counselling services for their members as a start.

Larger organisations could also offer their expertise and mental health resources to their SME partners, creating a healthier and more resilient business ecosystem. Pharmaceutical firm Amgen Singapore is exploring such an inclusive pilot with its suppliers.

Still, being small doesn’t mean you can’t care. Hush TeaBar made an arrangement with community mental health organisation Shan You Counselling to provide counselling sessions for its employees. The National Council of Social Service has a list of these organisations you can approach to provide baseline mental health support for your staff.

A well-being-first future: Thriving people, thriving businesses

Follow the evidence: Organisations that prioritise employee well-being not only are more resilient and sustainable, but also perform better. CEOs and leaders who invest in their own well-being are better equipped to lead with empathy and clarity, driving cultural transformation and fostering mental wealth in their organisations. It is this transformation that sets the foundation for thriving employees and long-term business success.

Work often provides more than just a source of income – it offers a sense of identity, purpose and community.

When organisations neglect mental well-being, they not only fail to support their people through crises but they also miss out on the full potential of their teams and the growth that comes from creating a culture where employees can thrive. Most successful organisations today aren’t profiting by putting profit over people – they are thriving by prioritising people.

The question we must now ask is no longer whether we can afford to invest in employee well-being, but whether we can afford not to create mental wealth.

*DBS Bank, Otis, Singtel, NUS, IHH, Rajah & Tann, Nomura and Amgen are members of WorkWell Leaders, a non-profit collective of CEOs and leaders that champions workplace mental health and well-being.