Growth-obsessed economy creating ‘unseen mental health crisis’ for people in poverty: UN expert

NEW YORK – Government policies designed to drive economic growth are taking a devastating toll on the mental health of people in poverty, according to a new report by the Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Olivier De Schutter.

De Schutter warned that increasing GDP at all costs was creating a “tidal wave of mental ill health” among people in poverty. While 970 million people, or 11% of the world’s population, experience a mental health condition, those on lower incomes are up to three times more likely to suffer from depression, anxiety, and other common mental illnesses than those with the highest incomes.

“The mental health impacts of living in a world in thrall to growth, obsessed with productivity and competitiveness, are increasingly recognised as contributing to ‘burnout’ among white-collar professionals,” De Schutter said.

“Yet it is people living in poverty, working mostly in informal or precarious jobs, that suffer from this condition the most, while having the least resources to cope – creating a mental health crisis that is largely ignored and unseen.”

The report details how changes in working conditions and moves to ‘flexibilise’ labour have played a major role in the increase of mental health problems affecting people on low incomes. Decisions taken “in the pursuit of growth” to push workers towards less standard forms of employment have resulted in fewer long-term employment contracts, more ‘casual’ or ‘self-employed’ part-time work and, as a result, reduced worker protections and wages.

“Shockingly, in today’s 24/7 gig economy, unemployment can sometimes be a healthier option than taking a job,” De Schutter said.

“While unemployment can increase the risk of mental health conditions, doing precarious work has been found to lead to even worse mental health outcomes – due to insecurity, lack of bargaining power, unfair pay and wildly unpredictable work schedules which make it impossible to manage a healthy work-life balance.”

The expert called on governments to urgently address the rise of precarious work, putting legal protections in place to guarantee decent work and a living wage. He advocated for scheduling regulations that would provide workers with advance notice of their work schedules and compensation if these change, as well as improving economic security by guaranteeing a minimum number of hours to part-time workers.

Economic security could also be provided through strengthening social protection, the report finds, including through introducing a universal basic income (unconditional cash payments to all), an initiative which has been proven to improve mental health.

“Our obsession with growth has created a burnout economy – a race to increase the profits of a tiny elite in which millions of people have been made too sick to run,” the Special Rapporteur said.

“Instead of combating poverty, ‘growthism’ has led us down a path of extreme economic inequality – with disastrous consequences for rich and poor alike, as more unequal societies suffer higher rates of depression, anxiety and other mental health problems.

“It is only by addressing this broken economic system, and by putting well-being above the endless quest for more, that we can begin to seriously address poverty and the mental health crisis that accompanies it.”