• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns

2

Anthropic disables Fable and Mythos AI models after U.S. government bars it from giving foreigners access

3

U.S. energy secretary says 7 million barrels of oil exiting Persian Gulf daily, but Chevron CEO rebuts the claim

1

Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns

2

Anthropic disables Fable and Mythos AI models after U.S. government bars it from giving foreigners access

3

U.S. energy secretary says 7 million barrels of oil exiting Persian Gulf daily, but Chevron CEO rebuts the claim
HealthBrainstorm Health

Your employees are not okay: How to handle mental health at work during a pandemic

Erika Fry
By
Erika Fry
Erika Fry
Down Arrow Button Icon
Erika Fry
By
Erika Fry
Erika Fry
Down Arrow Button Icon
November 16, 2020, 9:45 AM ET

With cases of COVID-19 again surging across the country and around the globe, employers face the enormous challenge of maintaining a healthy workforce.

But for many, protecting workers from the highly contagious, sometimes fatal coronavirus is no longer the top worry: It’s the anxiety, depression, loneliness, burnout, and stress that have come to afflict employees throughout the pandemic.

“There’s been much more of a need to deal with mental health than the physical health side of COVID, to be honest,” said Dr. Richard Jenkins, vice president of medical services at Emirates, the Dubai-based airline, at a Fortune virtual Brainstorm Health event on Thursday. Feelings of loneliness and isolation were a significant problem among the Emirates’ workforce.

“We had a couple months where our crew were either flying on the aircraft or in isolation, so the only time they were with people was when they were in the aircraft at work…That loneliness and isolation really did impact their mental health. Constant change, uncertainty, these are all things that are destabilizing and can knock you back,” said Jenkins, who noted the airline made a concerted effort to make employees feel comfortable with having and sharing those feelings: “To be concerned or be uncertain at this time is normal. So don’t be afraid of it, identify your feelings and come forward.”

Emirates offers everything from group chats and guided meditation to personal counseling for employees who need it. Jenkins has also led an effort to make senior managers more comfortable in engaging on matters of employee mental health. “We’ve linked in with the leadership teams to support them in having the confidence to ask those questions—Are you concerned? Are you frightened?—and have permission to make that a part of their daily routine and part of their leadership inquiry,” explained Jenkins.

While employees may be understandably wary divulging personal mental health issues with their managers, Dr. Jay Wohlgemuth, chief medical officer at Quest Diagnostics, thinks we’ve reached a turning point of sorts.

“Absolutely the pandemic created an environment where we accelerated the destigmatization of mental health in the workplace, and now everyone’s talking about it, and it’s okay to talk about it,” said Wohlgemuth, who said he personally has struggled with depression. He has spoken openly about his experience at Quest and thinks that’s partly why 11,000 of the company’s employees have signed up for the company’s mental health services.

“You really need a senior level champion,” said Wohlgemuth, “That kind of punched through our environment. COVID helps, of course, too. People are much more willing to talk about it.” He added that Quest’s senior leaders have been enthusiastic for training that helps them manage their own mental health as well as engage on the matter with their teams.

Along with the feelings of uncertainty and isolation, Wohlgemuth said he’s made a point of telling teams it’s okay to have fun at work right now and that a period of great suffering doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy things.

Dr. Richard Kim, chief medical officer at American Express, which has had an employee mental health program for more than a decade, said he’s been focused on meeting employees where they are—the company does regular sentiment checks on how employees feel about returning to the office among other things—and improving access to mental health care. At a time when so many employees are working remotely, and possibly in isolation, the company has made community building a major focus. It has been helpful for the workforce to “rally around something good,” as they did recently around a charitable cause.

Tina Moen, senior deputy chief health officer and chief pharmacy officer for IBM Watson Health, says this moment is all about humanity—and remembering that when it comes to employee well-being and their needs.

About the Author
Erika Fry
By Erika Fry
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Health

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Health

U.S.’s screwworm fix is still a year away, risking more spread
North AmericaAgriculture
U.S.’s screwworm fix is still a year away, risking more spread
By Ilena Peng and BloombergJune 13, 2026
4 hours ago
Meet the lone star tick: the primary U.S. source of alpha-gal syndrome, which is a life-threatening meat allergy that’s on the rise
HealthHealth
Meet the lone star tick: the primary U.S. source of alpha-gal syndrome, which is a life-threatening meat allergy that’s on the rise
By Matthew Perrone and The Associated PressJune 13, 2026
12 hours ago
arms
HealthPsychology
You probably think you’re a really open-minded person, but the real thing raises your death anxiety
By Daryl Van Tongeren and The ConversationJune 12, 2026
1 day ago
AI was supposed to cut health care costs. One of its first jobs was charging you more, PwC report shows
AIHealth Care Service
AI was supposed to cut health care costs. One of its first jobs was charging you more, PwC report shows
By Whizy Kim and Tech BrewJune 12, 2026
1 day ago
Plunge All-in Cold Plunge Review (2026): Expert Tested
HealthDietary Supplements
Plunge All-in Cold Plunge Review (2026): Expert Tested
By Christina SnyderJune 12, 2026
1 day ago
Redwood Outdoors Duo Sauna Review (2026): Our Honest Experience
HealthDietary Supplements
Redwood Outdoors Duo Sauna Review (2026): Our Honest Experience
By Emily PharesJune 12, 2026
2 days ago

Most Popular

Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns
Real Estate
Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns
By Sydney LakeJune 13, 2026
18 hours ago
Anthropic disables Fable and Mythos AI models after U.S. government bars it from giving foreigners access
AI
Anthropic disables Fable and Mythos AI models after U.S. government bars it from giving foreigners access
By Jeremy KahnJune 13, 2026
23 hours ago
U.S. energy secretary says 7 million barrels of oil exiting Persian Gulf daily, but Chevron CEO rebuts the claim
Energy
U.S. energy secretary says 7 million barrels of oil exiting Persian Gulf daily, but Chevron CEO rebuts the claim
By Jordan BlumJune 12, 2026
1 day ago
Corporate America has been draining the world's water. Matt Damon's new campaign calls on Gap, Starbucks, and Amazon to help give it back
Environment
Corporate America has been draining the world's water. Matt Damon's new campaign calls on Gap, Starbucks, and Amazon to help give it back
By Catherina GioinoJune 9, 2026
5 days ago
Current price of oil as of June 12, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of June 12, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJune 12, 2026
2 days ago
SpaceX CFO Bret Johnsen quietly engineered its historic IPO and became an overnight billionaire
C-Suite
SpaceX CFO Bret Johnsen quietly engineered its historic IPO and became an overnight billionaire
By Sasha RogelbergJune 13, 2026
19 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.