Suffering in silence: Canada’s P&C professionals and mental health

Competition in the Canadian property and casualty insurance industry may be good for consumers, but it’s also a major reason why industry employees are not talking about – or taking time off – to address their mental health issues.

“I would never discuss my mental health with my management or peers ever,” one industry professional writes in Canadian Underwriter’s 2024 Mental Health Survey. “I don’t want to be seen as weak, held back for promotions, or seen as not being capable. It’s a career-limiting maneuver.”

Forty-six per cent of 836 Canadian P&C insurance professionals surveyed say they have been distracted by a mental health issue (either their own or someone else’s) “once or twice a week,” while 19% say they are distracted at work by a mental health issue “multiple times a day.”

And yet, 34% say they would feel ‘uncomfortable’ (22%) or ‘very uncomfortable’ (12%) talking to their peers in the office about mental health concerns. The overall discomfort level shoots up to 47% when asked about speaking to managers or executives about mental health concerns.

Fifty-eight percent say they haven’t taken a single day off this year to address a mental health issue (either their own or someone else’s). Another 30% say they have taken between one day (14%) and two-to-three days (16%) off this past year to address mental health concerns.

Seventy-four percent say they didn’t spend any time during the week consulting resources or medical professionals about a mental health issue.

Canadian Underwriter’s survey was conducted in August, at a time when industry professionals were slammed with 228,000 claims in four weeks — 42.5% more than all the claims they handled last year. The research was sponsored by Allstate Canada.

Record-high claims counts, at a time when the industry is grappling with a well-documented labour shortage, have P&C industry professionals concerned about their mental health.

The survey found that, on a scale of 1-10, with 1 being ‘no concerns at all,’ and 10 being ‘unable to cope,’ 30% of industry professionals rated their own mental health either a 7 (20%) or an 8 (10%).

Related: Mental health report: What stresses out Canadian P&C professionals

So, why isn’t anyone saying or doing anything about it?

Competition — or more specifically, concerns about ‘appearing weak’ to peers or managers — is a major worry, the survey’s written answers suggest.

“The stigma associated with mental health and stress is still very real in the workplace,” one industry professional writes. “Repeated requests for support to alleviate workload are unanswered and open positions remain unfilled due to a lack of skilled/willing workers.

“An inability to manage stress and/or workload resulting in a failure to meet goals/objectives is viewed as poor performance and met with criticism.”

Another P&C professional says simply, “cutthroat industry,” when asked why they feel uncomfortable talking about mental health issues in the workplace. “Weakness would have an effect on partnership potential.”

Says another: “I feel like I will be judged poorly for not being able to cope, despite the fact that I’ve been given the workload of two-to-three people.”

Personal privacy is another reason cited for not talking about mental health concerns at work.

“I am a private person,” one industry professional explains. “I am uncomfortable discussing [mental health issues] with my spouse, let alone management and peers.”

Still others won’t talk about mental health concerns at work because they don’t think anything will change if they do.

One respondent says they don’t raise concerns “due to the organizational culture. The organization boasts it supports mental wellness, but there are leaders that don’t walk the talk and that is why it is uncomfortable.”

Adds another: “Management doesn’t care about mental health. They just care that they have someone to assign an overabundance of claims to. They guilt and gaslight employees into thinking that our inability to cope with work stress is a ‘motivation’ problem, or a ‘coaching opportunity,’ when in reality it’s systemic workplace culture problem.”

Fear of raising mental health concerns is not exclusive to employees. Management also finds it hard to open up about it.

“My competency as a leader may be called into question,” one industry executive states. “I need to be a strong and stable leader.”

But managers willing to take that risk and talk openly about mental health issues can positively affect the organization’s culture, says one industry professional.

“My direct leader is fantastic,” says the survey respondent. “Beyond that, I’m not entirely sure the conversation would be met with empathy and understanding. I’ve only heard one executive leader talk about mental health openly, and I think that sets the tone for the conversation.”

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