A week in tech news seldom goes by without it spanning the full gamut of emotions for a techie such as myself—excitement over a new technology, sympathy for layoffs, a pang of FOMO for a technology you've not used, or maybe that simmering Imposter Syndrome rears its head. It's common to accept these feelings as part of the job and common to reflect on our own status and success in comparison to others. What's my million-dollar side-hustle or extracurricular project? How does my code portfolio look? etc. To survive in the Tech community is to embrace change and by doing so you improve your chances of success, but perhaps at a cost, mentally.

The Tech sector's stats reflect this fragility:

• High Salaries: Tech jobs command some of the highest salaries, with compensation 60% or more higher than the UK national average.
• Continued Growth: The sector is expanding, with a 10% increase in the UK Tech sector in 2023.
• Low Employee Tenure: Despite the lucrative pay, UK tech workers stay at jobs for just 1.6 years on average.
• Frequent Role Changes: Up to 50% of surveyed UK tech employees plan to leave their jobs in 2024-25.

So why do tech employees leave? A 2021 study by Iconiq identified the top reasons:

• Dissatisfaction
• Career advancement
• Pay
• Stress

This data was from before the AI wave disrupted industry globally, raising concerns about career stability. Research from 2024 suggested that up to 30% of jobs in writing, coding, and imaging could be impacted by AI tools.

If tech employees were already permanently on the lookout for greener grass and more stability, then the last 2 years of AI advancements have only exacerbated that.

The cost of hiring and attrition

The financial burden of losing tech employees is substantial:

• Time to hire: It takes approximately 60% more time to hire a software engineer than in other professions, often depending on highly skilled tech workers to administer what can be a protracted interview process.
• Recruitment costs: Hiring a new software engineer through agencies can cost 15-20% or more of a first year's salary.
• The average Tech salary in the UK in 2024 was anywhere up to £60k (NB: less than half of what Big Tech offers UK staff).

With recruitment costing on average £12,000 per position in fees, not to mention in time, retaining employees is crucial if you're to avoid hiring impacting your ability to ship.

More than perks and salaries

Personal tech budgets, free meals, lavish company outings are some of the stories you hear of Big Tech cultural in the media. Smaller tech companies also find ways to treat their staff better than average. Employee Assistance Programmes, plugged into HR systems, are common, providing reactive mental health services, gym memberships and restaurant tokens, but to those in crisis these can seem like lip-service. These integrated systems can also seem too much like an extension of HR and to the paranoid and stressed, it can feel like a risk to seek a reminder from a colleague of how to access mental health services.

Perhaps unsurprisingly and despite these perks, mental health is still an unsolved problem:

• In 2022 the Burnout Index surveyed Tech employees across 33 countries
  • 62% of tech professionals feel physically and emotionally drained due to the demands of their job.
  • 2 in 5 of the workers surveyed show a high risk of burnout with 42% of these considering quitting their role in the next 6 months.
  • Tech workers are more susceptible to impostor syndrome due to the rapidly evolving nature of the industry.
• Poor Mental Health Management: A 2025 evaluation of 119 global companies found that major tech giants, including Alphabet, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla - those you would expect to have the profits to invest in their employees - ranked among the lowest in workplace mental health management.

It would seem that taking a more proactive, first-class approach to mental health in the workplace is not that common in the industry despite the benefits of greater investment: Deloitte found that every pound spent on mental health returned 4.70 pounds – a 370% return!

The tech industry thrives on innovation, but sustaining that innovation requires an engaged, productive, and commercially stable workforce. While pay and perks can go some way to compensating staff, they aren't solving the problem at the root.
Prioritising employee mental health through appropriately structured support and proactive engagement is not only beneficial for employees — it makes business sense. It's a strategic advantage for companies looking to reduce turnover, save on recruitment costs, and maintain a competitive edge in an uncertain world.

By investing in employee mental wellbeing with the right solution, employers are making a sound investment in the success of their people and their organisation, while demonstrating innovation leadership in the wider industry.