Let’s talk about the price of staying silent

Workplace Mental Health

Written by: Lee Anne Van Wyk 

A 2025 MindMatters SA survey found that 56% of South African employees have been diagnosed with anxiety, depression, burnout, or other mental‑health conditions linked to their working environment, yet only 27% feel comfortable discussing these challenges with their employer.

I’ve seen this pattern in many workplaces over the years. Someone raises a concern and it gets brushed aside. A mistake gets hidden instead of fixed. Eventually people choose silence because it feels safer than speaking up.

The real danger isn’t the issue itself, it’s when we stop noticing it. When “that’s just how things work here” becomes the norm, broken processes stay broken for years.

Silence may feel safe in the moment, but it costs us. It erodes trust, blocks innovation, and allows small problems to grow into big ones.

A culture of safe speaking‑up changes that. It means raising concerns without fear of being dismissed. It means leaders who listen, and teams who treat feedback as a tool for improvement, not a threat. 

This isn’t just opinion, it’s a national trend. A 2025 SADAG study found that more than half of South African employees are struggling with depression, anxiety, stress, or burnout, and nearly half feel unhappy at the start of each workweek. The study also highlights that 52% of workers have been formally diagnosed with a mental‑health condition, reinforcing how widespread, and often unspoken, these challenges are.

 

 

If you’re dealing with this now, you don’t have to navigate it alone.

Start small: write down the specific issue, share it with one trusted person, and use facts when you raise it.

Progress begins when we make it safe to speak up.

References

MindMatters SA. (2025). Workplace Mental Health Survey: South African Employee Wellbeing Report.

South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG). (2025). Employee Mental Health and Burnout Study.

South Africa Workplace Wellbeing Index. (2025). Psychological Safety and Organisational Culture Insights.