Businessolver
2024 State of Workplace Empathy

55% of CEOs Have Experienced a Mental Health Issue, Up 24 Points

Our ninth State of Workplace Empathy study, featured in Business Insider, MSNBC, and Forbes, reveals a strong association between workplace toxicity and mental health: Employees who view their workplace as toxic are 47% more likely to experience a mental health issue. Mental health stigmas, barriers to empathy, and misaligned expectations and behaviors all play a role in toxicity at work. While all audiences surveyed value empathy and view it as a key driver of business performance, real barriers persist to putting empathy into action—especially for 63% of CEOs who say it's hard to demonstrate empathy in their day to day. 

It’s time to join the conversation about the impact of empathy in the workplace 

2024 Businessolver Empathy Executive Report cover image
Dive into the data and analytics of the current state of empathy in the workplace.
2024 State of Workplace Empathy Game Plan Report Cover
Learn how to put empathy into action.
Businesolver State of Workplace Empathy DEIB report cover
Just Released

The State of DEIB

Our 2024 State of Workplace Empathy findings show feelings of belonging and connectedness have plummeted year-over-year among employees, HR, and CEOs—despite reporting that corporate DEIB initiatives have largely become more visible. We partnered with Holistic, a DEI consulting firm, to look at what today’s workplaces can do to nurture diversity initiatives—even without a budget.

2024 State of Workplace Empathy Mental Health Report Cover

The Barriers to Mental Wellbeing at Work

Explore how barriers to empathy and deep-seated stigmas are feeding workplace toxicity and perpetuating the ongoing mental health struggles in today’s workplaces. Read the report to learn about our 10 strategies you can adopt today to support mental wellbeing in your organization.

Empathy Under Pressure:
What’s Getting in the Way of Putting Empathy Into Action?

On paper, empathy is defined as “the ability to understand an experience the feelings of another.” But in reality, empathy is a complex, multi-faceted term that holds different value for different people. This year, our data revealed that despite the high value everyone places on empathy, overall execution is low.  

Here’s a Look at Some of Our Top Findings

How Empathy Impacts our Mental Health

The mental health stigma is still running rampant in today’s workplaces. Stigma, a lack of support from leadership, and misaligned mental health benefits play large roles in how the workplace impacts our mental health. 

%
Those who view their workplace as toxic are 47% more likely to experience a mental health issue
%
+24 points
from 2023
of CEOs have experienced a mental health issues

The C-suite is Struggling 

While CEOs say they themselves are more empathetic than they were four years ago, barriers to being empathetic in the workplace are driving a wedge between how CEOs want to show up and how employees perceive them.

Employees Crave Flexibility

I took a $10,000 pay cut to take this job because of work from home.”

– Government employee interview, 2024 State of Workplace Empathy

Among employees’ top-ranked empathetic benefits they say support empathy and work-life balance, flexibility makes up half the list. Employees increasingly seek autonomy over their schedules, favoring flexible work hours (94%) and flexible locations (90%) as key empathetic benefits—even over annual compensation increases (88%).

%
Of employees increasingly seek autonomy over their schedules

Is Workplace Toxicity Perpetuating the Mental Health Stigma?

CEOs (81%), HR (72%), and employees (67%) agree or strongly agree that companies view someone with mental health issues as weak or a burden. This year’s findings suggest a strong correlation between workplace toxicity and mental health issues.

%
+8 points
from 2023
Empathy CEOs Icon
CEOs view someone with mental health issues as weak or a burden
%
-6 points
from 2023
Empathy HR Icon
HR professionals view someone with mental health issues as weak or a burden
%
+8 points
from 2023
Empathy Employees Icon
Employees view someone with mental health issues as weak or a burden

 

About Businessolver’s Annual State of Workplace Empathy Study
Since 2016, Businessolver has surveyed a diverse cross-section of more than 20,000 employees, HR professionals, and CEOs across six industries to examine the behaviors and benefits that make a workplace empathetic. In the survey, empathy is defined as “the ability to understand and/or experience the feelings or perspectives of another.” In March 2024, a third-party firm fielded the online survey for the 2024 study among employees, HR professionals, and CEOs within financial services, government, healthcare, hospitality, manufacturing, and technology sectors. To qualify for the survey, respondents needed to be 18 years or older, U.S. residents, employed full-time or part-time within their respective industry at an organization with 100 or more employees.