Eco-anxiety in the Workplace: Shifting from helplessness to hope

Eco-anxiety, the persistent worry employees carry about current and future climate change, is becoming a documented mental health factor in the workplace. A new study set out to measure how it has moved through the workforce and what it's actually costing employers today, as opposed to what employees are simply feeling. The findings are based on an online survey of 2,020 employees, including 740 managers, conducted in 2025 by the Research Chair in Mental Health, Self-Management and Work, powered by Beneva. It's the first large-scale study to focus specifically on how eco-anxiety shows up inside small and medium-sized organizations.

The research found that eco-anxiety concern is high among employees, while its measurable effect on day-to-day performance is still comparatively low. That is good news for employers, but only if they act on it now. For benefits and pension professionals, this is a genuine window to intervene early, before eco-anxiety compounds into the kind of disengagement and burnout risk that eventually shows up in claims and disability data. The research also surfaces an underused lever for engagement strategy: alongside the worry, employees report real hope, and that combination has direct implications for how plan sponsors approach wellness and retention.

By downloading this white paper, you will get:

• How employee concern about eco-anxiety compares to its current impact on performance, and what it means for plan sponsors ready to act early
• A breakdown of the study's methodology, including who was surveyed and how eco-anxiety was measured
• The eco-emotions most common in today's workforce, and which one supports stronger employee engagement strategy
• Why managers experience eco-anxiety differently than the employees they oversee, with direct relevance to leadership and wellness benefit design
• Five practical starting points benefits and HR leaders can act on now, while the window for prevention is still open

Eco-anxiety is high, but it's not too late to take action. Download the guide to see how your benefits plan can get ahead of it, before impact catches up with concern.

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