Considering leaving work has "gone mainstream" says a new report, with one in 10 UK workers actively considering leaving work with mental health the main driver.
News
Intervention is key, says PwC as 4.4m more workers set to leave labour market
This equates to 4.4m workers who are on the brink of leaving the labour market. Younger workers – aged 18-24 – are particularly at risk, says PwC’s new report published yesterday.
The factors behind the rise in economic inactivity are “various and complex”, it says and often there is no “one single reason”. Over a third of the 4,000+ people interviewed for the study cited unfulfilling work, while just under a third (32 per cent) said that mental health drove them out of work and 10 per cent cited caring responsibilities.
Photograph: iStock
Better mechanisms to identify those at risk early are key and support for employees once they are at risk, argues the report, which found that although most (83 per cent) of employers it approached offer wellbeing support, many employees are reluctant to ask for it. Workers cite feeling “too embarrassed” to ask for help and nearly half (45 per cent) who did speak to their employer before leaving were offered no support.
Marco Amitrano, PwC Senior Partner, writing in the report’s foreword said: “Many say that the right interventions at the right time could have made all the difference. But once they are out of work, confidence wanes and a short period too often becomes an indefinite one.”
Brian Dow, CEO, Mental Health UK commented: “Secure employment is a pillar of good mental health and many people experiencing mental illness can thrive at work, providing the right support is in place.”
It comes as a separate report from the Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS) found “compelling evidence” that mental health has worsened since the pandemic.
Over half, or 55 per cent of the post-pandemic rise in disability benefits can be accounted for by claims primarily for mental health, according to the IFS, with an increase in ‘deaths of despair’, and more people in contact with NHS mental health services.
Read PwC's report Turning the Tide on economic inactivity here
Read the IFS report the role of changing health in rising health-related benefit claims here
NEWS

Workers report having to engage in ‘emotional labour’ to remain positive, finds study on emerging technologies
By Belinda Liversedge on 29 August 2025
Emerging technologies have the potential to fundamentally reshape the world of work. These technologies can enhance productivity and, in many sectors, improve occupational safety and health (OSH) outcomes for workers. However, they may also introduce new risks that are difficult to anticipate and manage.

Lack of first aid skills leave a third of workers feeling powerless, finds St John Ambulance study
By Belinda Liversedge on 29 August 2025
Four in five employees genuinely care for colleagues, but couldn’t help them in an emergency such if they had a cardiac arrest or were severely bleeding, new research from St John Ambulance has found.

HSE defends use of AI for protecting workers at AGM
By Belinda Liversedge on 12 August 2025
Artificial intelligence (AI) and its impact on work practices was a significant feature of HSE’s AGM in which the regulator presented on its work and priorities.