Women’s Mental Health Challenges In The Workplace
We come across numerous headlines that mention the decline in women to men ratio in workplaces
Despite ongoing efforts, the gap persists and the situation is further exacerbated by the mental health crisis among working women. According to Deloitte’s 2024 Women @ Work report, 50 per cent of women respondents in India report higher stress levels than last year, yet only 42 per cent receive adequate mental health support. While we appreciate the achievements of women, we also know that their journey has been long with still many obstacles to overcome. Today mental well-being is a basic right for employees at the workplace.
For many women, the challenge starts even before they become employees. Questions like, "Are you planning to get married?” or “Do you plan on expanding your family soon?” show a company’s lack of understanding of equality, prioritizing gender over competence.
Society stereotypes often see women as primary caregivers, juggling both home and work roles. This not only limits their opportunities in the workplace but also undermines their confidence. We've essentially forced this role upon women, undermining their professional potential.
Given this scenario, organizations must focus on supporting women's mental health effectively by:
Implementing inclusive policies: Workplaces can play a pivotal role in helping employees navigate through difficult personal situations, be it child-rearing or caring for senior citizens. Companies need to acknowledge this situation and extend support by offering capacity-building and coping mechanisms.
Offering flexible working hours: Along with these remote work options, and other adaptable arrangements to help women balance their professional and personal lives more effectively would be helpful.
Address maternity break insecurities: The solution is not only to normalize maternity leaves, but also to give the farther more paternity leaves so that men can witness and support at this stressful and sensitive time. Companies need to also provide smoother integration back for the new moms as well.
Training to educate on gender equality: To educate but also inform employees of gender biases, employees should receive consistent gender equality training.
Provide mental health training and over-communicate
resources: Prioritize mental health training for people at all levels, ensuring everyone understands how mental health intersects with our identities including gender.
Understanding the nuances of women’s mental health will benefit everyone at work, from new-age dads who want to be more involved and the GenZers who expect a work-life balance. Hopefully, we will reach a time when we won’t need to separate the needs of women but instead will have achieved true culture change and inclusion.
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