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Men's health is now a boardroom topic. With the Deputy Prime Minister holding responsibility for men and boys policy, and more than 60,000 men diagnosed with prostate cancer every year without a workplace cancer programme to catch it, supporting men's health at work has moved from a nice to have to a measurable driver of retention, performance and risk.
This blog explains why benefits leaders should act now, what the data says about men's health in the workplace, and what good support looks like in 2026.
Why is men's health a workplace issue?
Men's health affects workplace performance because unmanaged physical and mental health symptoms drive absence, productivity loss and attrition. Men typically delay seeking help until a crisis point, which means employers feel the cost long before the individual asks for support.
Three Peppy Men's Health statistics make the case:
- 68% of men rate their health as good or better
- 72% are not meeting exercise recommendations
- 54% do not know their own blood pressure
Your male employees believe they are fine. The clinical data says otherwise. That gap shows up in absence figures, attrition data and the leadership pipeline long before it appears in any wellbeing survey.
Why don't men use workplace wellbeing benefits?
Men underuse workplace benefits because most programmes depend on people opting in, raising their hand and starting a conversation. For many men, that ask is the barrier.
Across every dataset on help-seeking behaviour, the pattern is consistent. Men wait. They wait for a performance dip. They wait for a relationship to break down. They wait for a diagnosis that cannot be ignored. By the time they reach out, the cost to the individual and the organisation is already significant.
This is not a personal failing. It is a cultural pattern. The way men have been taught to think about health is itself a health risk, and bravado is not something an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) can fix on its own.
What is the business cost of ignoring men's health?
The business cost shows up in four places:
- Absence: unmanaged physical and mental health symptoms increase sickness days
- Attrition: senior men quietly check out, taking tenure and expertise with them
- Productivity: silent health issues are a silent drag on performance
- Leadership pipeline: the men most likely to be struggling are often in critical roles
Replacing experienced employees is expensive. Retaining them starts with support they will actually use.
What does men's health support include beyond mental health?
Mental health support has become shorthand for men's health support. It should not be. A credible men's health offer covers:
- Prostate, urology and sexual health concerns
- Low testosterone and metabolic risk
- Fatherhood, divorce and caring responsibilities
- Workplace stress and burnout
- Physical health symptoms that go unspoken
Most benefit programmes do not cover this spectrum. Most competitors in the employer benefits market do not offer a dedicated men's health service at all. Ignoring this is, in practical terms, ignoring half your workforce.
What does good men's health support look like in 2026?
Effective men's health provision combines clinical access with cultural enablement. Practical actions worth auditing now:
- Confidential, app based access to specialist clinicians so men can get expert support without a public ask
- Proactive check ins and health MOT tools that surface issues before they escalate
- Manager enablement so responses are consistent across teams and locations
- A clinical pathway that covers physical, mental, sexual and reproductive health
- Anonymised engagement and impact data to evidence return on investment and inform future spend
Employers have more influence over men's health outcomes than most realise. Manager language, colleague dynamics and whether asking for help carries a social cost are all decisions an organisation makes, whether consciously or not.
Why is 2026 the moment for benefits leaders to act?
Read the headlines and men's health looks like a risk register. Read the policy direction and it looks like the opposite. Men's health now has political momentum behind it. Employers who move first set the standard. Employers who wait will be responding to attrition, tribunal risk and Glassdoor reviews instead of shaping their workforce strategy.
Earlier intervention reduces absence. Confidential support keeps senior men engaged. A credible men's health offer strengthens recruitment, retention and the leadership pipeline. Benefits leaders who build the foundation now will spend the next five years compounding that advantage.
Men's health at work: frequently asked questions
How many men engage with workplace wellbeing benefits?
Engagement varies, but men typically use wellbeing benefits at a lower rate than women. The issue is rarely awareness. It is design, confidentiality and whether the benefit reaches men before a crisis.
What is a men's health MOT?
A men's health MOT is a structured check of key health indicators, including blood pressure, weight, lifestyle factors and symptoms, designed to help men understand where they actually stand and what action to take.
Is men's health support only for older employees?
No. Fatherhood, fertility, mental health, workplace stress, sexual health and metabolic risk affect men across every career stage. Support needs to span the full working life.
Join us for Men's Health Week 2026
On 11 June 2026, ahead of Men's Health Week, Peppy is hosting a session for HR, Reward and Benefits leaders on the data, the clinical evidence and the practical framework behind supporting men's health at scale. You will leave with the confidence to make the internal case for investment and the actions to build a workforce culture where men engage before a crisis.