Cut hours not people and prevent a mental health crisis, says the University of Cambridge

Cut hours not people and prevent a mental health crisis, says the University of Cambridge

Some level of employment – even just one day a week – plays a fundamental role in securing mental wellbeing and prevent a mental health crisis, according to new research. 

The Cambridge sociologists found that UK employees who were either furloughed or shifted to a part-time position during April and May 2020 were at the same risk of poor mental health as full-time colleagues. But those who’d lost all their working hours were twice as likely to suffer from poor mental wellbeing. The work was carried out as part of the Employment Dosage project among more than 7,000 UK people.

Sharing hours

In the wake of their findings, researchers have called for the UK government to encourage more employers to share out available working hours rather than cut jobs. This would be in line with the ‘short-time working’ approach being used across Europe – seen as a less expensive option than furlough schemes and less likely to cause a long-term legacy of damage to mental health from redundancies.

“As well as the individual misery caused, the costs of poor mental health to the UK’s productivity and health service are vast, and cannot be afforded at this critical time,” said Professor Brendan Burchell.

Stay together

EAPA chair Eugene Farrell said: “We’ve always known that while workplaces can be a serious source of stress, any negatives are far outweighed by the benefits. Being part of a team, sharing a mission, overcoming challenges, the recognition and status; as well as all the day-to-day pleasures that come from just being among people, being part of something together, even if it’s only digitally for the moment.
“That’s what EAPs have been doing all these years: helping people stay at work, able to keep the benefits from being in work and contributing, while also managing to deal with all kinds of personal issues. EAPs help save people from long term absence. Getting the equilibrium right, between work and home lives, is going to be essential to everyone as we work our way though the pandemic age.”