The 2020 chamber of employees’ quality of work survey, shows a gradual increase in private-professional life conflicts, in physical health problems and burnout, and a decline in general wellbeing Shutterstock

The 2020 chamber of employees’ quality of work survey, shows a gradual increase in private-professional life conflicts, in physical health problems and burnout, and a decline in general wellbeing Shutterstock

The cause is the increased workload, “because people are sick, in quarantine or on extraordinary leave because the kids don’t have school.” Added to this, the demands of remote working: single-parent families juggling work and homeschool and the isolation of young professionals working from “their 25-square-metre studios.”

It is a challenging time and yet ASTF did not record a spike in contacts for burnout or depression compared to 2019. Thiry believes this is because so few people are in the workplace and in normal times, the majority of contacts are made through HR referrals. Her suspicions are, however, backed up by figures from the 2020 chamber of employees’ quality of work survey, showing a gradual increase in private-professional life conflicts, in physical health problems and burnout, and a decline in general wellbeing.

Health training

The survey also notes a decline in workplace training, although here Thiry believes employers are stepping up. “For the moment, they are doing a lot of training around homeworking and health measures,” she says. Demand for ASTF training in stress management and personal development, among other things, has grown so much “we don’t know where to put them in our agendas,” says Thiry.

Patrizia Thiry, pictured, says that in normal times, the majority of contacts are made through HR referrals but with people still teleworking, they are less likely to be referred. Photo: ASTF

Employers have also found their own solutions. UBS, a bank with offices in Luxembourg, focused on a combination of tools and resources supporting physical, mental, financial and social wellbeing. Among them are a mindfulness app offering sleep, nutrition and physical activity coaching, and a confidential service with access to health professionals, lawyers, financial specialists and counsellors. Additional training and tools were given to line managers to help support team wellbeing. The solutions have been well used: some 17,000 employees registered for the app and completed 185,00 meditation sessions.

Relaxation pods

Staff at PwC Luxembourg would have made good use of the relaxation pods and sleep room installed in early 2020, had they not been closed because of the pandemic. Nevertheless, the firm, which counts around 3,000 employees, stepped up when it became clear that the second wave of the pandemic presented increased challenges for staff. In January 2021, it launched “Ready, Set, Recharge”, a six-month wellbeing programme with mon­thly themes and events aimed at em-powering staff. Already, some 446 staff have participated in the programme.

The International School of Luxembourg spends up to 10% of its personal development budget on mental health-related support, including paying for substitute teachers. It subscribed to a mental health programme from global experts Icas and the private school introduced mental health first aid training for staff, ideas “which have been on the planning for some time, but the pandemic has really brought the need for these things to the fore,” a spokesperson said.