Navigating workplace incentives, mental health, and cost of living

According to an expert, one of the most significant forces shaping workplace mental health is sustained cost of living pressures.

According to Telus Health senior vice president and managing director, Jamie MacLennan, “when people are worried about paying rent, managing debt or keeping up with everyday expenses, that stress inevitably shows up at work.”

Based on the latest TELUS Health Barometer, around 44 per cent of employees reported that the primary source of stress arose from financial concerns, with more than four in 10 reporting that they felt constantly stressed.

The research found that nearly one in three workers reported that their mental health affected their productivity, while one in two Gen Z employees struggled with this same issue.

“This is not a short-term issue, but a structural challenge for organisations navigating a prolonged period of economic uncertainty,” MacLennan added.

He stressed that HR departments must treat mental health, financial wellbeing, and workload pressures as interconnected issues, because if they do not, they will struggle.

“The organisations that perform best will be those that take a more holistic approach, investing in proactive and genuine mental health support, financial wellbeing initiatives and leaders who are equipped to have meaningful conversations,” MacLennan added.

“That is how businesses will enhance productivity, empower talent and build more resilient workplaces.”

Expanding the ‘financial reward’ definition

According to MacLennan, HR departments can establish financial incentives amid rising living costs without relying solely on pay rises, by expanding on what a “financial reward” means.

“Practical financial wellbeing initiatives, such as access to budgeting support, financial coaching, superannuation guidance, or advice on major life decisions, can provide real value to employees,” MacLennan said.

For MacLennan, HR departments can tailor benefits to different life stages from early-career workers to parents and those nearing retirement.

“By improving financial literacy and helping employees feel more in control of their money, organisations can reduce stress and strengthen retention even when salary growth is limited.”

Taking a proactive approach

MacLennan noted that HR departments face numerous challenges when developing mental health programs, including ongoing stigma that reduces employee uptake, difficulty measuring ROI, fragmented vendor solutions, and managers who lack the confidence or training to have mental health conversations.

Based on TELUS’ research, up to one in three managers said that they were not adequately trained to support mental health issues.

MacLennan said that funding that normalises mental health must be visible and from executives.

“Investing in training for frontline managers is critical, equipping them to recognise early warning signs and support employees appropriately,” he said.

“HR teams should also take a more proactive approach by combining digital and in-person mental health support, underpinned by data and clear outcomes.”

“Linking these programs to business metrics such as retention, productivity and absenteeism helps demonstrate impact and secure ongoing investment.”

A cultural issue

Psychological safety is lacking in workplaces, MacLennan said, with employees fearing negative career consequences or judgment and managers lacking the time, skills, or organisational support to facilitate open and honest dialogue.

For MacLennan, this was compounded by cultures that prioritise task completion over relationship building, which creates transactional interactions as opposed to trust-based conversations with employee needs, concerns, and aspirations to be understood.

“Line managers need to be trained on what signs to look for, how to effectively engage, and know where to point staff members to receive support,” he said.

“Too often, a genuine commitment to wellbeing from senior managers falls down by a lack of training for front-line managers.”

Overcoming the ‘less talk, more work’ mindset

HR departments need to reframe open dialogue as a business imperative by using data to unveil the impacts that businesses could experience because of silence, such as higher turnover and productivity loss, MacLennan said.

According to TELUS research, 31 per cent of employees reported that mental health directly impacts their productivity, with high-risk employees losing nearly three times more productive time; by contrast, employees who feel well supported lose around 30 fewer productive days per year.

In addition to securing executive sponsorship of mental health programs, MacLennan recommended that workplaces mandate structured listening forums, such as skip-levels, pulse surveys, and town halls, which explicitly tie employee input to business outcomes.

“Starting with small, low-risk pilots that address key operational pain points felt by the business can deliver quick wins and demonstrate that feedback improves performance,” he said.

“Over time, this helps shift the culture from viewing feedback as ‘complaining’ to seeing it as a driver of continuous improvement.”