Employers Must Stop Relying on 'Wellbeing Add-Ons' as a Substitute for Addressing the Root Causes of Workplace Stress, Warns IOSH Report

Employers must stop using 'wellbeing add-ons' as an alternative to tackling the root causes of workplace stress, experts have warned. A newly published report from The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) looked at worker experiences from 22 countries—including the UK—and found that a common theme: workforces are under more pressure than ever before. The findings highlight a global trend where businesses continue to rely on reactive benefits such as lifestyle perks and one-off incentives while leaving fundamental issues such as job design, workload, working hours, organisational culture, and psychosocial hazards largely unaddressed. Ruth Wilkinson, IOSH's head of policy, said: 'Too many organisations still lean on reactive measures or wellbeing 'add-ons', while the real issues driving harm go unaddressed. Prevention must be embedded into the systems, culture, and leadership of every organisation.'

The IOSH report likened the overreliance on perks to 'papering over cracks' with temporary solutions that ultimately fail to protect staff from avoidable harm. 'Our findings make one message unmistakable: the future of workplace health and wellbeing cannot be built on perks, posters, or token initiatives,' Wilkinson added. Mental health issues such as stress, anxiety, and depression were identified as the most common challenges facing employees. The report exposed a sharp global rise in workplace health and wellbeing challenges, alongside a widening gap between good intentions and genuine impact. Wilkinson emphasized that while employers are investing in worker health, the lack of systemic change means these efforts are not addressing the root causes of harm. 'For this reason, employers need to take a proactive approach and this starts with prevention,' she said.

Being stressed at work can have profoundly damaging long-term effects that ripple far beyond the office. Prolonged stress triggers the release of hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline, which can dramatically increase the risk of heart attacks, weight gain, and obesity-related diseases. According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), in 2024/25, 964,000 workers in Great Britain experienced work-related stress, depression, or anxiety. Physically, chronic stress manifests in symptoms like chest pains, headaches, and muscle aches, all linked to the overproduction of cortisol and adrenaline. These hormones cause blood vessels to constrict, forcing the heart to work harder and leading to high blood pressure, heart palpitations, and muscle pain. The report also revealed that mental health conditions accounted for a significant portion of the 40.1 million working days lost last year, highlighting the economic and human cost of unaddressed stress.

Workplace stress has far-reaching consequences that extend beyond individual health. Last year, Wes Streeting, the UK's Health Secretary, instructed GPs to stop issuing sick notes for mental health struggles and instead refer patients to gyms or job centres. This directive sparked warnings from health leaders, who argued that it risked worsening mental health by pressuring people to 'keep going' despite severe burnout. Lisa Sharman, head of education and training at St John Ambulance, said: 'When public language suggests people are exaggerating or being written off, it can make some individuals feel even less safe to speak up.' She emphasized that burnout—characterized by physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion—is not just a buzzword but a real and early warning sign of deeper issues. 'If it's recognised and addressed early, people can and will recover sooner,' she added.

Union leaders echoed the IOSH report's findings, calling for systemic changes rather than superficial solutions. Unison's national officer for health and safety, Joe Donnelly, said: 'Prompt intervention could stop hundreds of thousands of people leaving the workforce each year for entirely avoidable health reasons. All too often, employers worsen pay and conditions, overwork staff, and undermine safety standards, then offer 'mindfulness' classes as a solution.' Dan Shears, GMB health and safety director, stressed that tackling the root causes of stress benefits both workers and employers. 'The report strengthens the case for primary legislation in this area—a Mental Health at Work Act—and we hope the UK Government will be open-minded in its policy considerations,' he said. 'Tackling the root causes of stress is in everyone's interests.'

As the report makes clear, the path forward requires more than slogans or one-off initiatives. It demands a cultural shift where organisations prioritise prevention, foster psychological safety, and address systemic issues like workload and organisational culture. 'Only then can we shift away from firefighting and build genuinely healthy, safe, sustainable, and resilient working environments,' Wilkinson concluded. For workers, employers, and society as a whole, the message is clear: the time for superficial fixes has passed. Real change starts with confronting the causes of stress head-on.