Workplace stress isn’t new, but the way it shows up in employee relations work is evolving.
In 2026, mental health won’t just influence case numbers — it will shape the very nature of the cases themselves. Employees are bringing more of their whole selves to work, including the personal challenges that affect performance, engagement and well-being. Anxiety, depression, burnout and other mental health concerns are no longer background factors. They are central to many of the conversations employee relations teams have with employees every day.
While overall case volumes are stabilizing, mental health issues tell a different story. According to the Ninth Annual Employee Relations Benchmark Study, while overall case volumes declined and fewer organizations reported increases across many categories, mental health remained the leading driver of employee issues, continuing the upward trend that began in 2022, though at a slower pace. This confirms what employee relations teams already feel: Mental health will remain a key driver of case volume.
For the third year, organizations cited mental health challenges as the leading factor behind employee issues. Stress and uncertainty keep these cases prominent, often adding complexity that affects performance, accommodations, and team dynamics.
Looking ahead, employee relations teams should expect mental health to remain a defining factor in case complexity and volume, requiring continued focus, resources and strategies to support employees and maintain organizational trust in 2026.
Your Move: Addressing How Mental Health Drives Case Complexity and Volume
The key to effectively managing rising mental health case count and complexity is a coordinated approach. Here’s how to tackle it:
- Clarify and streamline intake: Develop a clear process for capturing mental health concerns early. Ensure people leaders are brought into the loop so cases are triaged quickly, documented accurately and directed to appropriate support, including counseling, accommodations or other resources. Early recognition ensures employees get help before issues escalate.
- Align employee relations, benefits, accommodations and legal teams: Break down silos so all teams operate with the same guidance and escalation rules. Coordinated decision-making reduces risk, ensures consistency and provides employees with a supportive experience. “Right now I see compliance, people strategy and employee relations working together more often than ever before because silos don’t work in this kind of world,” says Rebecca Trotsky, HR Acuity’s Chief People Officer. “Each stakeholder has to engage with others to find the best outcomes for people and the organization.”
- Track mental health trends and workloads: Monitor case volume, accommodations requests and manager escalations tied to well-being concerns. Use this data to anticipate spikes, adjust assignments and provide targeted support before stress escalates into crisis.
- Standardize documentation for consistency and risk management: Capture mental health-related interactions clearly and consistently. Standardized documentation protects employees and the organization while supporting informed, fair decision-making.
- Foster a culture that prioritizes mental well-being: Encourage open conversations about mental health, normalize seeking support and provide accessible resources. This can include counseling or EAP access, mental health check-ins, meditation or mindfulness sessions, yoga or movement classes and breathing exercises.
How HR Case Management Platforms Support Teams as Mental Health Drives Case Complexity and Volume
Addressing rising mental health case volume and complexity starts with giving employee relations teams the tools to work smarter, not harder. The right HR case management platform will enable your team to:
- Track mental health trends effortlessly: The best HR case management solutions let you monitor mental health-related case volume, accommodation requests, manager escalations and workload distribution in real time. These insights help identify emerging issues, allocate resources proactively and spot patterns before they escalate — all without tedious manual tracking. (Psst: HR Acuity’s drag-and-drop dashboards require no data expertise, giving you quick, clear insights into mental health trends.)
- Streamline intake and reduce administrative work: Best-practice embedded workflows and templates standardize documentation and ensure cases are captured accurately from the start. With HR Acuity’s Speakfully, employees can submit accommodation requests that flow directly into the case management platform, while employee relations teams receive instant notifications for timely follow-up.
- Align teams and maintain consistency: Centralized case management ensures employee relations, benefits, legal and accommodations teams operate with shared context, reducing risk and providing a seamless experience for employees. Everyone stays on the same page, from intake through resolution — and sensitive case details stay secure.
- Leverage AI and actionable insights: HR Acuity’s AI-powered employee relations companion, olivER™, helps your team visualize trends and surface key patterns, turning complex mental health data into clear, easily digestible insights.
Want your team to manage mental health cases confidently, consistently and proactively? HR Acuity can help. Get a demo.
