Over the past six months or so, there has been a noticeable surge in calls for assistance relating to employee mental health and wellbeing across the UK construction sector.
Employees, often already under significant pressure, are increasingly facing a perfect storm of challenges: mid-life crises, difficult domestic situations, spiralling living costs, and mounting workplace demands fuelled by ever-demanding project targets. These pressures can often manifest in a concerning rise in long-term absences due to mental health issues, while performance-related concerns, including presenteeism and reduced productivity, seem to be on the incline.
Vaughan Hart, NFB Director of Employment Affairs
This trend highlights a stark reality: traditional methods of support, such as Employee Assistance Programmes (EAPs), while valuable, appear to be no longer sufficient on their own. As People Leaders, we are now being called to look beyond reactive support models and move towards a more holistic, proactive approach to safeguarding employee wellbeing in our sector.
The limitations of traditional EAPs
Employee Assistance Programmes have long been promoted as a key part of workplace wellbeing strategies across industry sectors. They typically offer confidential counselling, support services, and advice lines. However, despite 88% of UK companies now offering or having access to EAPs, research shows utilisation rates remain critically low, with only around 12% of employees accessing these services in 2022.
This raises a difficult but important question……….. if the tools (support services) are available, why are they not being used? It seems that the harsh reality for construction workers is that barriers such as stigma, time constraints, and a potential lack of trust or understanding about what help is available continue to deter engagement with these services. Within a culture that often promotes and rewards resilience and self-reliance, experience shows us that many individuals remain reluctant to admit they are struggling until their situation becomes unmanageable. Even then when support is offered, this is often “politely declined”?!
Unique challenges facing construction
Construction is inherently one of the UK’s most physically and mentally demanding sectors. Workers contend with fluctuating workloads, inconsistent contracts, physically strenuous tasks, and increasingly complex compliance obligations. Against this backdrop, personal pressures such as family breakdowns, financial worries, and health concerns can often feel insurmountable.
Studies show that 91% of UK construction workers have felt overwhelmed at work, and shockingly, around 26% have experienced suicidal thoughts. The traditional “macho” culture still prevalent in parts of the sector further discourages open conversations about mental health, meaning that individuals often suffer in silence until their performance deteriorates or they require extended sick leave.
A new approach: Moving towards holistic wellbeing strategies
It is clear that the sector needs to move beyond the traditional EAP model towards a more comprehensive, preventative approach.
But what exactly do we mean by “holistic”?
In this context, a holistic approach does not mean being “soft” or “overly sentimental”. Rather, it is a pragmatic and business driven strategy. It recognises that an employee’s mental health, physical wellbeing, financial stability, and working environment are all interconnected, and that if one area suffers, overall performance and resilience are inevitably impacted. Addressing these aspects proactively is about strengthening the workforce, reducing downtime, and ensuring individuals can sustain high performance even under pressure.
Adopting a holistic view is therefore not about well-meaning gestures; it is a strategic investment in the long-term health and productivity of people. In a sector where margins are tight, project delivery is critical, and skilled labour is in demand, supporting the “whole person” is not an optional extra, it is vital for maintaining a competitive, sustainable business.
Some key elements of a modern wellbeing strategy should include:
Proactive Mental Health Support:
For larger companies, this might mean introducing mental health champions on site, offering regular stress management workshops, and training managers to spot early signs of distress to create a robust safety net before problems escalate.
However, for SMEs and micro businesses, equally effective steps can be taken in a simpler way by encouraging open conversations during regular check-ins, undertaking basic mental health awareness training (readily available online), and making employees aware of external support resources. In smaller teams, even informal but consistent attention to wellbeing can have a powerful impact.
Flexible and Supportive Working Practices:
Where possible, offering flexibility in working hours, promoting work-life balance initiatives, and recognising the value of time off for recovery (without stigma) can reduce stress levels across the workforce. In smaller businesses where formal policies may not exist, even straightforward variations such as allowing flexible start times, understanding personal pressures, or offering ad hoc wellbeing days (flexible days) can make a significant difference without major disruption.
Building a Culture of Openness:
Most importantly, leadership must be visible in promoting mental health conversations, sharing their own experiences where appropriate, and ensuring that wellbeing is firmly embedded in company values and everyday practice. In small businesses, the impact can be even more immediate. The behaviour and openness of owners, directors, or managers directly set the tone for the entire organisation. Creating a culture where employees feel heard and supported costs nothing but yields considerable benefits.
Integrated Wellbeing Platforms:
Innovative platforms now exist that combine physical health support, mental health resources, safety alerts, and wellbeing advice in a single app or service. Larger companies may choose fully-featured digital platforms, however, smaller businesses can still signpost employees towards free or low-cost wellbeing apps, mental health charities, or sector-specific resources (such as those available through the B&CE Charitable Trust and Lighthouse Construction Industry Charity).
The business case for change
Investing in more comprehensive health and wellbeing strategies is not merely an ethical choice, it makes consistent business sense. Mental health-related absences and performance issues has been estimated to cost the UK construction industry an estimated £70–100 billion per year. High staff turnover, recruitment costs, and lost productivity all impact the bottom line.
Conversely, organisations that proactively address employee wellbeing see measurable benefits, leading to reduced absenteeism, improved morale, better retention, and stronger overall business performance.
Conclusion
The recent increase in mental health-related absences and performance concerns within the UK construction sector should act as a wake-up call. Traditional EAPs, while useful, are only one small piece of the solution. As business leaders, we must champion a more proactive, holistic approach that addresses the real challenges our workforce faces today and build the resilience we will need for tomorrow.
By taking wellbeing seriously, embedding it into the heart of organisational culture, and offering truly accessible support, we can create safer, healthier, and more sustainable workplaces across our sector.
