Companies say the benefit can be a tool for improving employee performance and, ultimately retention. Employees want mental-health care but often struggle to find the help they need that fits their schedule or is included in their insurance coverage, say executives at several companies. In-house counseling can save time and money and boost workers’ resilience and productivity, as well as their overall health and well-being, say health-care experts and human-resources executives.

In the past, discussion of mental-health issues at the office was uncommon. Workers were largely expected to leave their personal struggles at home. Crying was confined to the bathroom stall.

Today, that’s changing. One reason is a broadening of the popular understanding of “mental health” to encompass anxiety, stress and other widespread issues.

It’s also a reflection of a changing workplace. Younger workers are more comfortable talking about their struggles and expect their employers to take emotional distress seriously, says Jeffrey Pfeffer, a professor of organizational behavior at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

From “The Therapist in the Next Cubicle. “Wall Street Journal (January 31, 2019). https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-latest-perk-for-stressed-out-office-workers-therapy-comes-to-you-11580486984