Nearly 10,000 jobseekers across 8 cities & 83 industries share what impacts their mental well-being at work and what employers can do to build healthier workplaces
India, October 9, 2026: As workplaces increasingly recognise mental well-being as an important part of the employee experience, a new survey by Naukri among ~10,000 jobseekers highlights a growing openness towards mental health at work, while also pointing to the workplace practices that can make the biggest difference.
Key findings from the Naukri survey
- 61% jobseekers said they would openly disclose taking a mental health day.
- 42% of jobseekers said poor work-life balance affects their mental health the most.
- 27% cited lack of manager support as the biggest factor impacting their mental well-being.
- 1 in 2 jobseekers believe companies should set clear after-work boundaries to better support employee mental health.
- 1 in 3 jobseekers said losing out on career opportunities is their biggest concern when opening up about mental health at work.
Poor work-life balance emerges as top mental health concern
The survey finds that poor work-life balance is the biggest workplace factor impacting mental health, cited by 42% of respondents. This is followed by a lack of managerial support (27%) and heavy workload and deadlines (20%), highlighting that mental well-being is closely linked to everyday workplace culture and management practices.
Importantly, the findings also indicate that jobseekers are not shying away from prioritising their mental well-being. 61% of respondents said they would openly disclose taking a mental health day at work, suggesting a gradual shift towards treating mental health as a legitimate part of workplace well-being rather than something that needs to be kept private.
However, the survey also highlights an opportunity for organisations to build greater psychological safety. 1 in 3 (33%) of respondents said their biggest concern about opening up about mental health at work was losing out on career opportunities, while 32% worried that nobody would care. A further 19% feared being seen as weak, and 16% were concerned about their situation becoming office gossip.
What do jobseekers want employers to do differently?
When asked what companies could do to better support employee mental health, the strongest preference was for clearer boundaries between work and personal time, with 53% of respondents selecting this option.
This was followed by training managers to identify signs of burnout (22%), while 13% favoured dedicated mental health leave and 12% preferred greater access to counselling support.
