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Discover how mentally healthy workplaces in NSW are. 

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Measuring mental health at work

In 2017 we started measuring how mentally healthy NSW businesses were to set a benchmark for our state. We did this by working with academics and experts to develop the NSW mentally healthy workplaces benchmarking tool. 

This tool measures the attributes of a mentally healthy workplace across five different levels of capability and allows workers and leaders to identify which level they sit at. The tool can also be used to track progress over time and chart how businesses compare against others across the state.

In 2020 and 2022, we used the tool to survey businesses again. The results show, as a state, we have made positive progress across several indicators, but there is still more work to be done. 

More workplaces are mentally healthy

In 2017 there were 67,542 NSW businesses taking effective action to create a mentally healthy workplace.

In 2022, this increased to 92,933, exceeding our target of 90,000. 

92,933 NSW businesses taking effective action to create mentally healthy workplaces

This represents a 37.6% increase in the number of businesses taking effective action on mental health between 2017 and 2022. That's over a quarter of businesses in NSW now proactively preventing risks to mental health in the workplace.

37.6 percent increase in NSW workplaces taking effective action on mental health
26 percent pie chart - 26 percent of NSW businesses proactively preventing risks to mental health in the workplace

Improvements in focus areas

Between 2017 and 2022, regional and small businesses became mentally healthier. 

Our four targeted industry sectors also improved:

  • transport, postal and warehousing
  • information media and telecommunications
  • manufacturing, and 
  • professional, scientific and technical services. 

Overall, the areas where NSW employers made the biggest improvements were:

  • evaluating and improving the quality of the support services they offer 
  • linking support services to their work health and safety KPIs, and 
  • monitoring whether employees are using work health and safety support services. 

How we're supporting NSW businesses 

Despite this progress, psychological injuries continue to rise in number and severity. NSW workers compensation data shows that psychological claims rose 30% between financial years 2018–19 and 2022–23, compared with 11% for physical claims. The average cost and time off work in these cases is more than triple that of physical claims.

Our Psychological Health and Safety Strategy 2024 – 2026 sets out how we will keep working to reduce harm to NSW workers by supporting businesses to manage factors that impact mental health (called psychosocial hazards), and to meet their legal obligations.

Research papers

NSW benchmarking 

The NSW benchmarking tool has been used to survey and benchmark the state in 2017, 2020 and 2022.

Read the 2022 report:

MHW benchmarking tool report

woman working from home on her laptop and collage of people working in different industries


Download (PDF 1.29MB)

Previous benchmarking reports

2020 Mentally healthy workplaces benchmarking tool report (PDF 1.29MB)

2017 Mentally healthy workplaces benchmarking tool report (PDF 7.15MB)

Literature and evidence reviews 

In 2020 SafeWork NSW commissioned the University of Sydney to update its 2017 literature review of research to understand the key risks and interventions of workplace mental new health, with new evidence.

The psychosocial risks and interventions for mental ill-health in the workplace report (PDF 2.28MB) outlines what was done.

Previous literature and evidence reviews

Review of evidence of psychosocial risks for mental health 2017 (PDF 2.21MB)

Review of interventions to reduce mental ill-health in the workplace 2017 (PDF 2.27MB)

Key issues from review of risks for workplace mental ill-health 2017 (PDF 2.11MB)

Return on investment study

A 2017 report that uses real-world data to look at the cost of workplace mental health interventions to show the potential impacts to business bottom line.

Mentally healthy workplaces return on investment study 2017 (PDF 1.4MB)

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