SAP offers employees paid mental health day to recharge

Software company SAP is implementing a paid global mental health day for its thousands of employees on April 27, 2021.

The company decided to act to address employees’ mental health concerns after discovering that one-third of SAP’s employees were experiencing stress levels that were higher than their work satisfaction levels and that 61% of employees were working beyond their capacity.

Social distancing, lockdowns and remote work have all negatively impacted people’s mental health and interfered with their lives and the way they work. Depression can hinder a person’s ability to perform job tasks 20% of the time and reduces cognitive performance about 35% of the time, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“The last year has been the most trying and disruptive year in our personal and professional lives,” says Dan Healey, head of HR for SAP North America. “It became really clear that we needed to call out a day that helps us recognize the importance of mental health and wellness and also destigmatize mental illness around the globe.”

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The company-provided day off is part of a greater initiative around mental health and wellness SAP started last year. The program, called “It's okay when it's not okay,” provides a platform for SAP and its employees to have conversations about what they are feeling and what kind of support they are looking for. SAP realized that it needed to elevate the conversation around mental health and wellness even more.

“It’s not just another day off,” DJ Paoni, president of SAP North America, said in a blog post announcing the mental health day. “It’s a clear message from the company that it’s OK to relax. Healthier employees mean happier customers, so there is a business benefit in the long run.”

There has been an increase in mental health issues during COVID-19. Reports from SAP’s global EAP show a 28% increase in calls in 2020, according to the company. While mental health issues are common — one out of four Americans ages 18 and older suffers from a diagnosable mental disorder every year, according to the Johns Hopkins Medical Institute — there is still a societal stigma around seeking help.

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“Stigma usually stems from a lack of understanding or fear of the unknown,” Dr. Natalie Lotzmann, chief medical officer at SAP, said in the blog post. “The fact that people don’t talk about the problem makes it harder to understand.”

When employers offer a safe space for employees to be vulnerable without fear of being stigmatized and judged, they are highlighting a supportive and positive company culture.

“Employers have a vested interest in keeping their employees safe, healthy and well,” Healey says. “While this is a business-driven motivation, it underscores the important role companies must play in addressing the mental health crisis: by creating a psychologically safe environment for employees to ask for help, an organization is not only making its own business stronger but also helping to solve this systemic challenge.”