Should Employees' Stress Be Covered by Business Insurance Policies?

Employees' Unmanageable Stress Levels

There has been a lot of coverage in the media in recent years about workplace stress and the impact it is having on business, but also health services around the world.

The figures are frightening – depending on the report you read, anywhere from a third to 80% of workers report unhealthy levels of stress – with 12.5 million work days lost in 2016 alone. The cost to the economy is enormous and the damage this can cause a business need hardly be pointed out.  

The Role of Employers in Fighting Their Staff Work Stress

Aside from the obvious financial benefits for doing so, businesses also owe a duty of care to their employees and must be seen to be managing the problem through employee care staff policies which promote healthy working environments. Of course stress is a natural consequence of a competitive workplace and not all stress is bad, it’s what helps drives performance after all. But sustained stressful situations is not healthy and so increasingly companies are looking to take steps to reduce stress where they are able, or to implement stress management techniques where it is not. And medical insurance for employees often now features preventative benefits in the form of wellness programmes, counselling sessions and the like.

Taking mental health issues seriously is particularly important for businesses who are employing expatriate staff or who are sending their staff offshore to work in overseas locations. Work is stressful in and of itself, but throw in the added stress of a move to a new country with the challenges of housing, education and healthcare and you have the recipe for real mental health issues if insufficient planning goes into the process.

Corporate Policies to Cover Wellbeing at the Workplace

Companies invest hugely in staff whom they relocate, so taking care of them by providing adequate levels of appropriate medical insurance is hugely important. These polices need to operate in the country these staff are being relocated into, but must also allow for these staff to be returned home if necessary.  For this reason, international medical plans are often more suited than domestic plans which seek only to provide local coverage. Just knowing that they can receive the best medical care locally, or be treated elsewhere if the local care is inadequate can in itself reduce stress and be a real mental health help for these staff – it’s one less thing to occupy their minds.

If you are looking for a group insurance plan for your expatriate staff then HCI can help. We help employers all around the world protect their most valuable assets when they are on offshore assignments. Our plans are international and are designed for the needs of international businesses.

Talk to us today.