11 The widening employment gap The largest economic impacts are not driven by short term sick leave, but by a widening employment gap. In fact, 98% of productivity losses are caused by reduced workforce participation. The report reveals that the UK has one of the strongest links between poor mental health and long term economic inactivity, with employment rates 29 percentage points lower among people with a mental health condition (53%) compared with those without one (82%). In comparison, the gap in similar markets such as Germany and Australia is around 40% lower, at approximately 17–18 percentage points. Persistently high rates of mental illness despite significant investment The report shows that the biggest costs of mental illness often sit outside formal protection systems such as community social care. Across six countries analysed – Australia, Chile, Germany, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom – the burden falls heavily on individuals, families and employers, through losses in wellbeing and productivity that can far exceed official mental health care spending. Cost to the UK economy In the UK, the economic value of wellbeing lost to mental health conditions is around seven times greater than what is spent on formal mental health services. The UK already invests 1.4% of GDP (around £42 billion) in mental health protection systems, such as community mental health teams (CMHTs), but this is clearly not sufficient. Mental health related productivity losses are projected to exceed 5% of the UK’s GDP by 2030. This is equivalent to £170 billion a year and is far higher than the projected loss for other comparable markets: 4% of GDP for Australia, 3% for Germany, 2% for Chile, and 1% for both Malaysia and the UAE. The report also measures effects on people, productivity and protection systems through to 2030, using metrics such as years of healthy life lost, workforce participation gaps and system level costs.
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