Rural Scotland Business Panel Survey February 2023

7. Wellbeing and support

Key findings

A majority (79%) of business owners/senior managers had experienced personal impacts of the cost crisis. Generally feeling worried or stressed was the most common impact (57%), followed by working longer hours (49%) and struggling to balance work and home life (44%). Over a third (37%) reported impacts on their own health – with 31% saying their mental health had suffered and 25% their physical health.

Around six in ten (59%) employers had seen impacts of the cost crisis on their staff. Almost a third (31%) said staff were working at or beyond capacity, while around a quarter reported low morale (26%), requests for more flexibility in working patterns or locations (25%) and requests for longer or more hours (22%).

A majority (84%) of employers were taking, or planning to take, actions to support staff in response to the cost crisis. Two-thirds (67%) were engaging with staff to understand their needs in response to the cost crisis and around half were encouraging flexible working (51%) or increasing wages (50%).

A majority (79%) of business owners/senior managers had experienced personal impacts of the cost crisis. Generally feeling worried or stressed was the most common impact (57%), followed by longer working longer hours (49%) and struggling to balance work and home life (44%). Over a third (37%) reported impacts on their own health – with 31% saying their mental health had suffered and 25% their physical health (Figure 7.1).

Variation in personal impacts of the cost crisis

Tourism businesses were more likely than average to report feeling worried or stressed (65%), working longer hours (61%), struggling to balance work and home life (55%), reducing their pay or benefits (52%) and suffering with their mental health (38%).

Financial and business services, on the other hand, were more likely to report no impacts (26%).

Women-led businesses were more likely to report impacts in every category (other than working longer hours). The most substantial difference was in relation to feeling worried or stressed, which 75% of women-led businesses reported.

Echoing the overall pattern seen in relation to the cost crisis (Section 6), businesses that had struggled in the last six months and those unable to plan more than a month ahead were more likely to report each of the impacts listed. Those that had performed well and those able to plan beyond the next 12 months were more likely to report no impacts (29% and 36% respectively).

Impacts of the cost crisis on staff

Around six in ten (59%) employers had seen impacts of the cost crisis on their staff. Almost a third (31%) said staff were working at or beyond capacity, while around a quarter reported low morale (26%), requests for more flexibility in working patterns or locations (25%) and requests for longer or more hours (22%) (Figure 7.2).

Variation in staff impacts of the cost crisis

Businesses in the South of Scotland were less likely to have seen these types of impacts on their staff (47% reported no impacts, compared with 37% in the Highlands and Islands and 40% in the rest of rural Scotland).

Large businesses (those with 25+ employees) were more likely to report each impact. Other businesses more likely than average to report specific impacts were:

• Tourism businesses - requests for longer hours or additional work (43%), low morale (34%) and increase in sickness absence (19%).
• Financial and business services - requests for more flexibility in working patterns or locations (33%).
• Those that struggled in the last six months - low morale (40%) and staff working at or beyond capacity (39%).
• Those planning no more than a month ahead - staff working at or beyond capacity (38%), low morale (33%), requests for longer hours and more work (28%) and increase in sickness absence (17%).

Support for staff

A majority (84%) of employers were taking, or planning to take, actions to support staff in response to the cost crisis. Two-thirds (67%) were engaging with existing staff to understand their needs in response to the cost crisis. Around half were encouraging flexible working (51%) or increasing wages (50%) because of the cost crisis (Figure 7.3).

Variation in responses for staff due to the cost crisis

Businesses that had performed well were more likely to have increased staff wages (59%). Those that had struggled were more likely to have engaged with staff to understand their needs (71%), offered mental health support (35%), supported home or remote working (30%) and targeted support to those on lower wages (28%).

Certain actions were more common than average in the following sectors:

• Tourism – providing staff with free meals (42%), signposting external financial support (18%) and offering one-off hardship payments (17%).
• Finance and business services – offering flexible working patterns (65%), supporting home or remote working (51%) and signposting external financial support (18%).
• Creative industries – supporting home or remote working (45%).
• Food and drink – none of the actions listed (24%).

Women-led businesses were more likely to be engaging staff to understand their needs (79%), encouraging flexible working (63%), targeting support to those on the lowest wages (42%) and supporting home or remote working (38%).