HALF OF PEOPLE aged between 18 and 24 have said that a mental health issue has affected their work ethic at some stage of their career, according to a new survey.

Despite this, however, almost half (49%) of people in this age group said that they would feel uncomfortable ringing in sick to work if they had a mental health issue.

Across all age groups, 35% of employees said that a mental health issue had affected their work ethic, while 40% would not ring in sick because of their mental health.

Furthermore, 45% of people say they wouldn’t feel comfortable discussing a mental health issue at work. This figure rises to 53% for the 18 to 24 age group.

Helen Byrne, director of the Mindfulness Centre, said that “stress in the workplace can have an incredibly negative effect on an employees’ ability to do their job”.

The research was commissioned by One4All with the aim of “understanding how Irish workers feel about health and wellness, what employers are doing in these areas and where companies can improve”.

Michael Dawson, CEO at One4All, said: “The results show that, unfortunately, there is still a stigma around discussing mental health issues – particularly among our young workforce.”

Survey respondents were also asked what would make them more productive at work.

Almost half (45%) said that a “work from home” policy would increase their productivity but only 16% of people said that their workplace had such a policy.

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