Ask a colleague how they are and you will usually get a “Fine, thanks —busy!” Ask in August, when the out-of-office replies are on and half the team is away on annual leave, and the answer will be even more positive. But holiday answers are not the whole truth: they tell you how people feel away from work,not inside it. The truer picture comes from asking at national scale, and the UK’s workplace regulator does exactly that every year. The Hsealth and Safety Executive’s (HSE) latest annual statistics have been published — and every business owner should read them.
What the latest figures say
The headline is a record nobody wanted: 964,000 workers were suffering from work-related stress, depression or anxiety in 2024/25 — an increase of 180,000 cases on the previous year, and the highest figure on record (HSE, 2025). Of those, 409,000 were new cases arising within the year. Work-related stress, depression and anxiety now account for over half — 52% — of all work-related ill-health in Britain. Since 2023/24, mental ill health hasovertaken musculoskeletal disorders as the leading cause of work-related illness.
The cost in time is staggering: 22.1 million working days were lost to work-related stress, depression or anxiety in 2024/25 — an average of 22.9 daysper affected worker (HSE, 2025). That is not an occasional duvet day; it is a month of absence for every person affected. And beneath the absence sits something harder to see: Deloitte’s research on workplace mental health finds that 63% of workers show at least one sign of burnout — exhaustion, mental distance from the job, or declining performance — up from 51% in a previous survey (Deloitte, 2024). In a team of ten, that is six people running on empty.
What it costs a business
Deloitte estimates the total cost of poor mental health to UK employers at £51 billion a year — and, tellingly, the largest slice of this cost is not absence Presenteeism — people at their desks but unwell and underperforming — costs around £24 billion; staff turnover driven by poor mental health another £20 billion; absenteeism £7 billion (Deloitte, 2024). The colleague who never takesa day off but has quietly stopped performing is costing more than the one who calls in sick. For a small business, where every person carries a real share of the output, these national numbers translate into something very personal: one struggling team member is a measurable share of your capacity. For a sole trader, juggling sales, marketing, and admin, the figures can lead to personal
breakdown and the end of the business.
What businesses can do — and how We Work Well helps
Work-related stress is, by the HSE’s own definition, a reaction to conditions at work. We Work Well exists to identify the causes of stress and support you and your business to reduce or remove them. Our FREE Staff Wellbeing Survey gives your business an anonymous baseline of how your people are really coping — your organisation’s answer to the question the HSE asks nationally. Our accredited First Aid for Mental Health training puts trained First Aiders inside your team, so thecolleague who is struggling has someone safe to turn to early. And We Work Well Membership wraps it into a year-round approach: survey, action plan,trained staff, and the Work Well Programme — self-study modules for every member of the team, and a step-by-step method for whoever leads wellbeing, from a sole trader to a multi-site employer.
The national statistics tell us how employees are coping right now. The better question — the one your business can actually answer — is how YOUR people are coping right now. We can help you ask it - and act on what you hear.
If you are struggling right now: Samaritans are available free,any time, on 116 123; Mind’s information line is 0300 123 3393; and your GP is the right first step if low mood or anxiety has lasted more than two weeks.
References
Deloitte (2024) Poormental health costs UK employers £51 billion a year. Available at: https://www.deloitte.com/uk/en/about/press-room/poor-mental-health-costs-uk-employers-51-billion-a-year-for-employees.html
Health and SafetyExecutive (2025) Health and safety statistics: Key figures for Great Britain 2024/25. Available at: https://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/overview.htm
Health and Safety Executive (2025) HSE publishes annual workplace health and safety statistics. Available at: https://press.hse.gov.uk/2025/11/20/hse-publishes-annual-workplace-health-and-safety-statistics/