Mental health resources: What’s on P&C employees’ wish lists
Results published this week from Canadian Underwriter’s 2024 Mental Health Survey suggest Canadian property and casualty insurance professionals are suffering silently through crushing claims workloads, a labour shortage, and are unable to talk to anyone at work about how they’re feeling for fear of appearing weak and ‘killing’ their careers.
The survey also suggests industry professionals are ambivalent about turning to their company’s mental health resources for help.
How can P&C insurance industry employers better support employees through signs of mental health distress?
Recognizing World Mental Health Day on Oct. 10, today Canadian Underwriter publishes a sampling of more than 250 written comments in our survey from the country’s P&C industry professionals, who offer many suggestions for addressing perceived gaps in the industry’s mental health resources. The survey was made possible with the assistance of Allstate Canada.
Some of these suggestions may or may not be within the scope of industry employers to address, including comments about Employment Assistance Programs (EAPs). But consider this a wish list from P&C industry professionals who are seeking support for mental health concerns.
CU’s 2024 Mental Health Survey shows most P&C industry employees (70%) cite EAP programs as the primary mental health resource they know their companies offer. But several survey comments highlight gaps in some of these programs, including the availability and affordability of the support services they offer.
Many respondents want their companies to invest more in EAP offerings. For example, one says their EAP program has “thresholds set so that mental stress is not a ground for short-term leave.”
Some EAP programs have resource issues of their own, which can discourage P&C industry professionals from using those services.
“Our EAP is lacking,” one person reports. “It takes a long time for them to follow up with resources and, in my experience, my first session was with a ‘customer service’ employee rather than an actual therapist. I’ve had more success doing my own research and finding my own therapist by using our benefits.”
Some industry employees say EAP resources aren’t really suited to their individual circumstances.
“When I sign into our employee assistance resources online, I am looking to chat or call with someone to whom I can speak immediately,” one person says. “But all I have found are pamphlets about how to do my banking, how to do this, how to do that — all things that neither pertain to the stress levels I am feeling at the time, nor I need… [if I actually want] someone to help keep me from approaching the edge.”
The narrow scope of some EAP services is also a deal-breaker for those in need, especially when their mental health concerns are acute, chronic or long-term. For example, one industry professional says their EAP program offers a maximum of four counselling sessions, which isn’t enough.
“EAP and subsequent health coverage is minimal, and you’ll be forced to pay out of pocket, which becomes challenging after a while,” another writes in the survey. “Your mental issues may not be fully addressed, but your resources have run out. Cost is the main factor for me. I’ve done all I can with the resources I have. I do not wish to spend any more money on this right now. I’m not sure how that gap can be fixed.”
One alternative to EAP programs is to find one’s own counsellor and pay through the company’s benefits program, as some say they have done. Several suggest extending employee benefits to include counselling and therapy.
But others report the option to work through benefits instead of EAP has limitations.
“Our mental health benefits have recently increased, but with inflation it’s still not much,” one industry employee explains. “The therapist I see currently charges $170 per session. This means I have seven sessions with a therapist for a mental health condition that I will always struggle with.
“It would be nice to see benefits that support seeking mental health support continuously throughout the year, as opposed to a dire situation with seven sessions only.”
Paid time off dedicated to mental health also came up in several suggestions.
For example, one survey respondent wants to see “implemented mental paid days off [in the workplace], where it is not personal or flex [time], but an actual one day off that a person can take at any time [for mental health], without having to face any consequences or judgment.”
Whether or not P&C professionals would actually take the extra paid days off for mental health is another question. A large number of survey respondents indicate they didn’t take time off because they did not want to be seen as incapable of handling their workloads in a competitive workplace environment.
In CU’s survey, 58% of Canadian P&C employees say they haven’t taken a single day off this year to address a mental health issue (either their own or someone else’s). Another 30% say they have taken between one day (14%) and two-to-three days (16%) off this past year to address mental health concerns.
Many think it would be an improvement simply to discuss the topic of mental health openly in the workplace.
“Staff should always feel supported at work and feel free to approach management for help if needed,” as one person puts it.
The first three articles related to Canadian Underwriter‘s 2024 Mental Health Survey are:
Mental health report: What stresses out Canadian P&C professionals
Suffering in silence: Canada’s P&C professionals and mental health
Mental health report: Where P&C professionals turn for help
Editor’s Note: This series of articles about the findings of the Canadian Underwriter 2024 Mental Health survey references serious symptoms associated with mental health illness. If you, members of your family or friends need help, several mental health resources are available. They include:
Feature image courtesy of iStock.com/Portra
