1 in 3 struggling with mental health during lockdown – and unemployed struggling the most

Lauren Mistry | Read time: 2 minutes

New research from CV-Library shows that 32.5% of Brits have struggled with their mental health in the past three months, and job security appears to be the biggest concern for working professionals.

The same research shows that 54.1% of employers think they have done enough to support workers.

The biggest mental/emotional concerns for UK workers

The survey of 2,000 UK workers found that the biggest concerns are:

  1. I have worried about losing my job – 47.4%
  2. I have worried about not being able to find a new job – 47.2%
  3. I have worried about money after being placed on furlough – 16.3%
  4. I have worried about the company I work for folding – 15.9%
  5. I have worried about having my pay cut – 14%
  6. I have worried about money because my pay has been cut – 12.9%
  7. I have worried about having too much work to do – 12.9%
  8. I have worried about not getting a pay rise – 11.8%
  9. I have worried about being placed on furlough – 11.3%
  10. I have worried about my performance/productivity at work – 5.9%

Lee Biggins, CV-Library’s Founding CEO, explains that unemployed people are currently most likely to struggle with mental health:

“The study found that people who were unemployed were most likely to struggle with their mental health in recent months. In fact, the percentage rose to 37.1% amongst this group of respondents. Alongside this, 57.8% of unemployed people said they’ve worried about not being able to find a new job, 23.1% have worried about finances and 5.4% have worried about their health.

The findings also show that women were more likely to worry about money because they had their pay cut (16.2% of women vs 10.7% of men), and about not being able to find a new job (55.1% of women vs 42.6% of men). In addition, men were more worried about being placed on furlough (14% of men vs 6.9% of women) and about not getting a pay rise (12.2% of men vs 11.1% of women)”.

With lockdown easing but things still uncertain, many of us are worried about what’s next. Here at Youth Employment UK we have produced a round up of the best content available during this time.

  • Find our Coronavirus support content for employers here
  • Find our Coronavirus support for young people here

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