The number of workers taking leave of absence or days off due to mental health problems has been on the rise. The Labor Ministry has released the result of the FY2025 Survey on Workers’ Health and Hygiene (hereinafter, “the Survey.”) This article looks at the report and considers the issue of workers’ leave of absence relating to mental problems and company efforts to improve the situation.
[1] Trends in workers’ who took leave due to mental problems
According to the Survey, 13.5% of the companies saw their workers taking leave for 1 month or more or leaving their jobs due to mental problems between November 2024 and October 2025. Among them, one out of ten (10.8%) firms had workers who took leave for 1 month or more. As the table below shows, the Survey highlighted that larger firms generally have higher rates.
Table: Percentages of workers who took leave due to mental disorder by company size
|
Company size (number of workers) |
Percentage of workers who took leave for 1 month or more due to mental disorder |
|
10-29 |
0.3% |
|
30-49 |
0.4% |
|
50-99 |
0.5% |
|
100-299 |
0.7% |
|
300-499 |
0.8% |
|
500-999 |
1.1% |
|
1,000 or more |
1.1% |
[2] Measures to maintain workers’ mental health
The Survey shows 63.0% of the companies have implemented measures to maintain workers’ mental health. Limiting to companies with less than 300 employees, the ratios of firms that are making such efforts are as follows: companies with 10-29 employees, 54.6%; companies with 30-49 employees, 72.0%; companies with 100-299 employees, 98.5%. This shows larger companies tend to have mental health measures already in place.
Following are common measures implemented by companies.
-Stress check (64.0%)
-Evaluation and improvement of working environment, including analysis of stress check results by departments or sections (52.8%)
-Necessary consideration for workers reporting mental problems (52.5%)
-Establishing of a structure to provide consultation regarding mental health measures (48.3%)
The Labor Ministry’s website (“Kokoro no Mimi”) focuses on the support for companies to conduct training and share information about mental health measures with employees. It also has a section for workers, including 5-minute training videos useful for self-care. Please check and provide the information to workers as needed.
‘Reference
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, “FY2025 Survey on Workers’ Health and Hygiene”
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/toukei/list/r07-46-50b.html
“Kokoro no Mimi”
This information is based on laws and regulations as of the date of the original article.
