In October, I had the pleasure of joining Unmind’s breakfast roundtable at The Ivy in London – and let me tell you, the conversation was just as rich as the eggs benedict.
Unmind provide organisations with a complete mental health and wellbeing ecosystem– blending science and technology to help build adaptable, resilient and sustainable workforces.
We gathered to discuss workforce wellbeing and I raised something that’s often overlooked in workforce planning yet absolutely vital to the health of our labour market: the mental wellbeing of contingent workers.
While wellbeing has climbed the corporate agenda in recent years, millions of contingent workers in the UK – from temps and contractors to freelancers and gig workers – are still left out of the conversation. They often don’t have access to employee benefits, wellbeing platforms, or mental health support and it’s creating a quiet crisis.
A Crisis Hiding in Plain Sight
Contingent workers now make up 15% of the UK workforce, that’s over 4.5 million people. Many of them are vital to the delivery of services and bring agility, innovation, and skills yet when it comes to mental health, they’re often unsupported and unseen. Without the safety nets of permanent employment, contingent workers face higher levels of financial uncertainty, job insecurity, and isolation all of which contribute to increased stress, anxiety, and burnout.
The impact isn’t just personal, it’s economic. Poor mental health costs UK employers over £56 billion a year and when you consider that a growing portion of the workforce operates outside traditional employment models, it becomes clear: wellbeing is no longer just a HR issue, it’s a workforce planning imperative and everyone deserves to be well at work, not just those on permanent contracts. It’s also reported that businesses that prioritise wellbeing are 20x more likely to hit financial targets increased wellbeing leads to increased business performance
So, What Can We Do?
At PSR, we’ve asked ourselves a critical question: How do we ensure that the contingent workforce supporting the UK Public Sector isn’t left behind when it comes to mental health and wellbeing? And just as importantly, how do we support our SME suppliers – many of whom don’t have the resources to offer this kind of support themselves?
That’s why we offer Unmind, a clinically backed mental wellbeing platform, free to contingent workers deployed across our PSR customers those supplied through our agency partners as part of our wider Social Value Plan. Unmind gives workers access to expert-led tools, content, and support rooted in psychology and neuroscience. It’s designed to empower individuals to take control of their mental health proactively, privately, and safely. By extending this throughout our supply chain, we’re giving contingent workers access to wellbeing resources normally only available to employees of large corporates.
The Rise of AI Therapy and Why Caution Matters
During the breakfast, we also touched on the increasing trend of people turning to AI for mental health support. While digital accessibility can be powerful, not all AI tools are created equal. Nearly two-thirds of UK workers (65%) use AI intentionally for work – we can’t ignore AI usage but it’s a business risk not to safeguard its usage
We’ve seen troubling stories emerge like the widely shared case of a woman in the US who turned to a free chatbot for support during a mental health crisis and was encouraged to act on harmful thoughts. The platform lacked any clinical oversight and has since been heavily criticised.
This is where Unmind stands apart. Their platform uses AI powered by clinical frameworks and psychologist-approved content. It’s smart, scalable, and more crucially its safe. Alongside offering Unmind, we also provide access to Mental Health First Aiders for contingent workers across our programme, giving them someone to talk to when they need it most.
Final Thoughts
Sitting around the table last week, I was reminded that offering wellbeing support to contingent workers shouldn’t be optional. Strategic workforce planning needs to include wellbeing as a pillar, not an afterthought and that means thinking about how organisations can design contingent work that supports, rather than undermines, mental health.
This year, we introduced mid-assignment wellbeing check-ins for our contingent workers ensuring we’re offering the right support at the right time whilst also helping us evolve and future-proof our wider wellbeing programme.
To find out more visit our website: http://www.publicsectorresourcing.co.uk/Candidate-Support-Community
