Work-related stress and anxiety continue to be the most pressing health and wellbeing issues facing UK staff— for most age groups apart from Millennials —according to new research from GRiD.
For the second consecutive year, employers cited stress linked to overwork and uncertainty as the leading wellbeing issue for Gen Z (38%), Gen X (36%) and Baby Boomers (34%).
The sandwich generation
However, for Millennials (also known as Gen Y), employers believe that home life pressures, such as caregiving and relationship stress, are causing more stress than work. Personal stressors are ranked at 43% for this age category compared to 38% for work-related stress.
These findings are in line with others that have found Millennials are caring more, and earlier, than generations before them both for ageing parents and young children, often being dubbed “the sandwich generation”. A 2024 Deloitte study found Millennials reporting higher burnout levels than other generations, for example, partly because of home-life overload—not just job stress.
Financial stress on the rise
Another noteworthy finding from the research is the significant jump in employer concern for employees’ Financial Wellbeing, across all generations except Gen Z; there’s an increase in concern on this front for baby boomers by 7% from 2024-5, for Gen X by 4%, for Millennials by 7% and Gen Z by 0%.
What Employees Are Really Worried About
The study also asked employees directly about their biggest personal health concerns concern. Most generations said serious ill-health conditions such as cancer or heart disease.
But Gen Z stood out again—identifying workplace stress as their top issue, aligning closely with employers’ perceptions.
Implications for employers
While the data shows shifts in generational stress drivers, GRiD cautions against overhauling wellbeing strategies and benefits annually on the back of research insights like this.
Katharine Moxham, spokesperson for GRiD, said:
“Employees often face multiple concerns simultaneously, and these challenges rarely exist in isolation, as stress in one area of life often affects others. Regardless of the nature of their worries, employers should remain consistent in providing support for all staff, whether they are young or young at heart.”
Generations definitions:
Baby boomers: aged 61 – 79
Gen X: aged 45 – 60
Millennials: aged 29 – 44
Gen Z: aged up to 28
The research was among 500 HR decision makers and 1,250 employees.
You might also like:
