Young Australian workers are more stressed than Baby Boomers and Generation X

Are young Australians more stressed than previous generations in the workplace?

Pioneering research from the University of Sydney and the Black Dog Institute says yes — even as working conditions steadily improve — and it could feed a brewing generational divide in the office.

The new investigation examining trends in how people perceive work stressors coincides with a separate study released on Thursday by the Council of Australian Life Insurer that reveals an alarming number of Australians in their 30s are leaving the workforce permanently for mental health reasons.

The Australia’s Mental Health Check Up report by KPMG shows there has been an unprecedented 732 per cent increase in Total and Permanent Disability claims for mental health for 30- to 40-year-olds over the past decade. It is the biggest spike across all age groups.

University of Sydney’s Nick Glozier, a professor of psychological medicine, who has been leading the project with the Black Dog Institute is keen not conflate the two studies, or to confuse data on serious illness with more general findings on mental health.

But his own academic analysis reveals the reasons behind a widespread rise in Millennial workplace stress. And it may not be what you think.

“One of the things I really want to get across is we’ve got to get over attributing all of this change in mental health to COVID or the financial crisis, because that is not the cause,” Professor Glozier told The Nightly.

The more rapid deterioration of workplace mental health of Millennials and adult Generation Z compared to Generation X, generally defined as the 44-59 age group, and Boomers in their 60s, began at least a decade ago and reflected a wider real-world decline, he explained.

“That means that the people going into the workforce now are more unwell than previous workforces were, even before they start work,” he said, attributing this to an “enormous rise in youth mental health problems” that was set to get worse.

The research shows little shift in attitudes towards “psychosocial stressors” such complexity of the work, support services, autonomy and control.

“What has changed is that at any given level of work stress or work demand has a much bigger negative impact on the mental health of a 25-year-old now than it did on a 25-year-old ten years ago, or a 25-year-old 10 years before that,” he said.

“So, the younger generation of workers not only have more mental health problems to start with, they are also less resilient to work stress. They’re more sensitive,” Professor Glozier said.

The decline in mental health is occurring paradoxically at a time when companies, employers and unions globally have poured billions into the workplace wellness industry.

“When I started doing this, 25,30 years ago, there was much more discrimination - racial abuse, sexual abuse, much more sexual violence, hierarchical issues, people abusing power,” Professor Glozier said. “Our research is trying to unpick what’s going on.”

Mega-trends such as social media or climate change all played a role but so, too, had awareness raising and sensitisation campaigns, he said, while acknowledging the difficulties of striking the right balance.

In the 1990s and 2000s there was an enormous need to combat stigmas and encourage people to get help, but now evidence was emerging that, in some instances, constantly pushing heightened awareness and screening could also be harmful.

“As with all pendulums…it really needed to swing. And it’s probably, at the moment, swung a bit too far,” he said.

“Donald Trump has shown very clearly that if you tell people loudly enough and frequently enough that something is a problem. They will believe it.”

The spike in mental health issues among younger workers who make up an ever-increasing proportion of the workforce is creating a challenge for State and Federal Governments in both prevention and treatment costs.

“The unprecedented number of people leaving the workforce permanently in the prime of their working life has huge implications for them personally, for their loved ones, for our national economy and for our already stretched government support systems,” said CALI CEO Christine Cupitt.

The data released on Thursday shows Australians are leaving the workforce for good because of mental ill-health at a younger age than ever before, with the average age now 46, compared to 49 a decade ago.

The average age for other physical causes of permanent disability claims has remained stable at 49 over the same timeframe.

Almost 80 per cent of the overall increase in the number of permanent disability claims in Australia over the past decade is due to the exponential increase in mental health claims.

“At the end of the day, it’s Australian taxpayers who’ll be footing the bill if these trends continue as government safety nets and payments are stretched beyond capacity,” said Ms Cupitt.

Life insurers are the largest private sector provider of financial support to people experiencing mental health challenges, second only to the Federal Government.

Addressing general workplace stress must be broader than government action, argued Professor Glozier, urging the media to also do more to boost mental health and civil society not to be swayed by vested business interests.

Without downplaying serious mental ill-health, he suggested a rebalancing of workplace attitudes with an acknowledgement that jobs could be hard.

“I think we’ve lost this concept that actually work is meant to be somewhat stressful and difficult, that those things are actually part of life,” he said.

“We’re not all meant to be influencers and people sitting around as digital nomads in Portugal, having a fantastic time.”

Lifeline (24-hour Crisis Line): 13 11 14

Suicide Call Back Service: 1300 659 467

Beyond Blue: 1300 22 4636

Headspace: 1800 650 890