Half of women say their stress level has increased since last year (citing challenges related to work/life balance, health and domestic responsibilities, among other factors) and about the same amount are concerned or very concerned about their mental health, according to the Women@Work 2024 survey from Deloitte Global.
Mental health is a top three concern for women globally (48%), following financial security (51%) and rights (50%), according to the Deloitte survey, now in its fourth year. The research explores critical workplace and societal factors impacting the careers of women from 10 countries around the globe.
Women say the return-to-office mandates have contributed to the decline in their mental health and productivity, the study found. Fewer women feel supported by their employers to balance their work and nonwork responsibilities, prompting some to change employers. Additionally, few workplaces provide mental-health support and there is still a stigma associated with accessing support that is provided.
“Despite a small number of improvements since last year, our survey tells us that women are facing mounting pressures in the workplace, their personal lives, and in their communities,” Emma Codd, Deloitte’s global chief diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) officer, said in a recent press release.
“Globally, women feel their rights are backsliding, they are experiencing increased stress and taking on the majority of household tasks at home. Alongside this they are experiencing non-inclusive behaviors at work, are concerned for their safety and feel unable to disclose when they are experiencing women’s health challenges,” said Codd. “This is a situation that must change — and employers must enable this.”
Overworked at Work
The survey also shows a link between working hours and mental health. Half of women who typically work just their contracted hours describe their mental health as good, but this declines to 23% for those who regularly work extra hours. Only 37% of women say they feel able to disconnect from their work.
Yet nearly all women surveyed (95%) believe that requesting or taking advantage of flexible work opportunities will negatively affect their chances of promotion and 93% don’t expect their workload would be adjusted if they moved to a flexible working arrangement.
Among other workplace findings from the latest Women@Work study:
- Four in 10 women experienced microaggressions, harassment, or both at work in the past year. Further, a quarter of women say that people in senior positions within their organizations have made inappropriate actions or comments toward them.
- Nearly half of women are concerned about their personal safety at while traveling to or for work.
- More than one quarter of women experience challenges related to menstrual disorders, fertility and menopause, many feel unable to seek support or take time off from work (especially for menopause). So many of them work through pain.
Overworked at Home
Women who are the primary earner in their household still shoulder most of the responsibility for childcare, domestic tasks and caring for another adult, the study also found.
Additional Reading: Women’s Most Overlooked Issue
Half of women who live with a partner and have children at home says they assume the most responsibility for childcare, up from 46% last year. Only 26% say they split childcare responsibilities equally with their partner, down from 34% in 2023. Just 12% say their partner has the largest responsibility for childcare.
Additionally, nearly 60% of women who live with a partner and are involved in care of another adult say they take the greatest household responsibility for this task, up from 44% in 2023. Only 5% say this responsibility falls to their partner.
Meanwhile, 37% of women residing with a partner feel they have to prioritize their partner’s career over their own, a slight uptick from 2023. Although the top reason is their partner earns more (39%), nearly 10% of women who are the primary earner in their household still feel they must prioritize their partner’s career.
Only 27% of women who bear the greatest responsibility at home say they can disconnect from their personal life and focus on their careers, according to the study.
How Employers Can Help
“It is widely understood that more diverse organizations perform better, yet most organizations in our study are not making visible progress on their commitments to gender equality,” Elizabeth Faber, global chief people and purpose officer at Deloitte said in the release.
“To create inclusive cultures that enable women’s success at work, organizations should focus on addressing workplace factors that drive stress, reduce stigma and create a culture where women feel able to disclose challenges with their mental and physical health, support efforts to balance work responsibilities with commitments outside of work, and enact policies that empower women’s career progression,” said Faber.
Deloitte surveyed 5,000 women in 10 countries (U.S., U.K., Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, India, Japan and South Africa) between October 2023 and January 2024 for its latest Women@Work study. Each respondent answered 34 questions about their experience at work; the impact of that experience on their personal life; steps their employer is taking to support their career progressions and well-being; and their experiences beyond the workplace that impact their overall well-being.
