Page 18 - Insurance Times September 2019

a similar role in our increasingly knowledge-based economy, these issues at an employee level. There is clear evidence
according to the Global Risks Report. that stressed and worried employees don't bring their full
attention to the workforce. More secure employees are
At times we forget that societies are made up of individuals more productive," says one expert.
who have a range of unique needs and challenges that can
easily be disrupted by a change. It does not take much to In his view, insurance companies also have a role to play in
throw an individual's finances off track, particularly given helping to address the economic and social anxiety caused
that many people now live paycheck to paycheck. by global risks. There is a growing gap between the new
realities of work and the design of established social-benefit
The familiar downsides of globalization - trade wars that systems. Trends like the growth of the sharing economy and
relocate jobs, automation that creates downward wage the increase in workers who repeatedly change employers
pressure - don't feel so global when it's your job and your throughout their careers point to the need for agile
wages. But the impact of these human costs isn't limited protection: flexible insurance and associated worker
to stress levels at home. protections provided by multiple stakeholders and tailored
to individual career trajectories.
The mental health problems affect more than one in six people
across the globe. Apart from the impact on people's well-being, "With solutions such as income protection, we have always
the report estimates the total costs of mental ill-health at over had a role in helping fund the unexpected drop in income
€600 billion, or more than 4 percent of GDP, across the globe. due to illness, which is often stress-related these days. As
we go forward, we need solutions that allow people to
The personal often becomes the political, and the Global spread income over different working patterns, with
Risk Report raises the specter of individual discontent periods of employment and unemployment. There is a
metastasizing into a systemic threat, as populist sentiment, growing role for financial and other wellness solutions, like
fueled by economic frustrations and divisions within debt counseling, financial education and simple saving
multiethnic societies, leads to upheaval. vehicles, the expert further says.

"A world of increasingly angry people would be likely to There should be a holistic approach that goes beyond
generate volatile electoral results and to increase the risk traditional financial compensation and marries prevention
of social unrest," the report states bluntly. "If empathy were with rehabilitation. "If you applied this to chronic diseases
to continue to decline, the risks might be even starker." or mental health, that would mean offering customers
support to remain healthy, financial support if things go
Everything - societies, countries, companies - is mainly wrong, but also sup-port to recover from the condition,"
made up of individuals coming together for a common he says.
purpose. If that contract that binds people together fails,
then we will see large disruption if these people respond That strategy applies just as much to solutions for
politically to seek radical change. It is noticeable that a institutions as for individuals. The underlying causes of
message of protecting local employment and industries has stress-both personal and economic-demand a rigorous risk
played a part in recent electoral shocks. This then
challenges existing government and regulatory models-
domestic and international-creating further uncertainty.

So what is the solution in a world where industries cannot
halt change and governments cannot legislate wellness and
empathy? Experts say the answer has two strands:
companies proactively tackling mental health issues and
social isolation; and insurers helping to reinvent safety nets
crucial to worker security. In short, a fundamental
reimagining of the modern workplace.

"We see a number of companies already starting to address

18 The Insurance Times, September 2019