The workplace is essential to the economy. But when workers find themselves mentally strained, the cost is not just personal, it’s systemic.
Mental health challenges are rising across industries in the Philippines. Yet, support remains minimal, inconsistent, or absent altogether.
A 2024 AXA Mind Health Study found that 87% of Filipino workers experience at least one mental health symptom, ranging from fatigue and anxiety to low motivation, sleep issues, and emotional detachment. However, only 22% seek professional help, underscoring the vast gap between need and access.
In the BPO industry, burnout has become a constant. DOLE reports that 70.5% of workers experience extreme fatigue, 56.4% report sleep problems, and 50% say their performance has declined. Rotating shifts, relentless targets, and high turnover all contribute to a workplace culture where exhaustion is the norm, and mental strain is often ignored.
Emotional fatigue runs deep in the healthcare sector. Nurses and hospital staff continue to work long hours with high patient loads, often in understaffed environments. The trauma, exposure, and pressure that intensified during the pandemic have not let up. Yet, structured mental health support remains rare within the system that needs it most.
Educators, too, carry heavy emotional burdens. Teachers manage oversized classrooms, mounting paperwork, and students’ behavioral issues—all with little support for their mental well-being. Guidance counseling in schools is stretched thin, and most teachers are left to absorb the emotional load without training or formal systems to lean on.
Even in the retail and service industries, emotional stress is quietly building. Long shifts, low pay, and high-pressure customer interactions wear down workers. Despite these, mental health is rarely discussed in these spaces, much less supported.
Mental health remains to be treated as a personal issue, not a structural concern. Few employers offer access to therapy, in-house counseling, or integrated support systems. Many rely on occasional seminars or token wellness campaigns, far from what workers need.
If workers are the engine of the economy, their well-being must be protected. Employers must recognize that care is not a perk—it’s a responsibility.
Without it, the future of work risks being built on fatigue, not resilience.
