Can more time off help people destress?

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It isn’t the first time that an organisation has come up with a mental wellness policy. Several companies have introduced a variety of progammes aimed at helping employees strike a work-life balance. In 2020, for instance, fintech startup Razorpay announced the second Wednesday of every month to be a No Meeting Day to cut down on the number of internal meetings, and renamed its sick leaves to “wellness leaves". The same year, home services platform Urban Company launched an initiative where employees could take unlimited leaves if they had any physical or mental illness.

Global corporates like Microsoft and Unilever have also launched programmes for employees, with a focus on mental health and workplace stress management. At Capgemini, benefits like parental leave, surrogacy leave, and even gender affirmation surgery are a part of their employee wellness strategy.

Workplace stress, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), is defined as “the response people may have when presented with work demands and pressures that are not matched to their knowledge and abilities and which challenge their ability to cope."

Long hours, low salaries and the absence of growth opportunities are some of the biggest causes for rising workplace stress. Some other reasons include lack of workplace flexibility, difficult relationships with managers, and no work-life balance.

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According to a 2024 study by MediBuddy and the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), over 60% of Indian employees experience work-related burnout, which is significantly higher than the global average of 20%. The report was based on insights from employees of about 1,000 companies, which are utilising MediBuddy’s services.

The State of the Global Workplace report 2024 by Gallup, that surveyed 128,278 employees in over 160 countries, also highlighted the abysmal state of employee well-being in India. Only 14% of Indian workers reported as “thriving", compared to the global average of 34%. An alarming 86% of Indian employees admitted to “struggling" or “suffering".

A recent report, the India Technology Industry Compensation Benchmarking Survey 2024, concludes that “with Gen Z prioritising work-life balance, mental health support, and professional growth, it’s essential for companies to adapt their approaches to effectively attract and retain this emerging talent. The tech industry is intensifying efforts to engage millennials and Gen Z through differentiated benefits, including unlimited sick leave, burnout assessments.... "

But are leaves, whether for wellness or to de-stress, on their own enough to tackle the burden of rising work?

A temporary break

For Anuv Nair, 31, a graphic designer at a Bengaluru-based startup, staying glued to his laptop screen for 12-14 hours a day is a “usual" affair. He often skips meals, and suffers from constant body ache.

A few days of de-stress leaves may not be enough to recuperate from the extreme stress and anxiety he faces at work, he says. But “something is better than nothing. I believe every step counts. A handful of leaves every year may not be enough to unwind and rest it out but we need a beginning," he says. “I am optimistic that things will get better over time. Mental health is finally being discussed post covid-19, which wasn’t the case until a few years ago."

Agrees Shanaya Sahni, 36, a Mumbai-based event manager, whose job involves travelling at least two weeks every month. Describing herself as always “low on energy" and “sleep deprived", she believes a few days to just unwind and de-stress without having to run around is ideal. “If my company introduces the option to take mental health or stress leaves from work, I would be thrilled. There have been so many times I’ve found myself at breaking point yet pushed myself because of financial constraints," she says. “A paid leave like this will offer mental peace, even if it’s for a short period."

“It is important to set boundaries," Amit Nandkeolyar, associate professor of organisational behaviour at Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIM-A) told Lounge. Sticking to “time off" is essential in today’s well-connected times, points out Nandkeolyar. “You should spend time with friends and family, or just yourself, spend an hour each day on something that has little to do with one’s paid employment."

Beyond lip service

Despite the increased conversation around mental well-being, there are not many companies that have established formal policies that help employees deal with stress and strike a work-life balance.

“Short breaks can’t make up for the high levels of stress employees endure every single day," says Parinita Verma, 28, a sales executive at a Gurugram-based healthcare startup. “The need of the hour is to establish policies that create a conducive environment for mental well-being at work."

According to Verma, employees must not be pushed to the point of burnout that even a few days leave seems like a “blessing. While offices today offer the option to go hybrid, there’s no longer as much autonomy or flexibility. Seniors keep micromanaging, which adds to the stress. At the end of the day, what matters is delivering work not how and where you do it."

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Any significant change trickles down from the top to the employees, says Mumbai-based Parth Singh, a former HR professional-turned-entrepreneur.

“I have closely worked with companies in the past to create policies that benefit employees. But the reality is if it’s a bad boss or someone reluctant to change their mindset, there won’t be any positive impact on the employees," Singh says.

Hyderabad-based computer software engineer Manoj Prakash, 41, believes change will only happen if the senior leadership is willing to understand the employees’ side of the story without any judgment. Until it happens, temporary measures are nothing but lip service.

“Managers should be willing to delegate work to others if a particular employee is overburdened. There should also be an open channel to communicate with seniors in case there’s any work stress that an employee faces," he says. “If companies want their employees to be productive and deliver without compromising on their health, they need to think and act better. We need long-term, not short-term, solutions."

Write to us at lounge@livemint.com

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