Employers underestimate how hard returning from leave can be

Employees report more difficulty than HR decision-makers expect when they reintegrate after a leave of absence, and the gap is widest for men, according to new research from The Standard. In the study, 21 percent of employees said reintegration was a challenge for men, compared with 6 percent of HR decision-makers who said men struggle with it.

The Standard, a Portland, Oregon-based insurer that provides group disability and absence management products, commissioned the research. Two third-party firms ran parallel surveys of 509 HR decision-makers and 501 employees in early 2026 for the study, titled The Post-Absence Experience Is in the Eye of the Beholder, according to The Standard's announcement of the research findings.

Where perceptions diverge

HR decision-makers were more likely than employees to describe return-to-work difficulties as concentrated among women and younger workers, particularly Gen Z and millennials, according to Insurance Business. HR estimated that 58 percent of millennials struggle with work-life balance after leave. The Standard found that HR leaders see larger gender gaps than employees report.

Reintegration reversed the pattern. HR estimated that 44 percent of women face reintegration difficulties, while 50 percent of employees said they do. For men, the gap was 6 percent against 21 percent. Both groups largely agreed that reintegration cuts across generations.

Dottie Tieslau, assistant vice president of policyholder services at The Standard in Portland, Oregon, said what happens after employees return "may be even more important" than the support offered during leave. Respondents also said managers' support for employees reacclimating to workplace routines tends to be too short-lived, according to Inc.

Why the gap carries a cost

A separate Standard study from June 2026, Mental Health in the Workplace: Will Gen Z Men Shrink the Stigma?, found that Gen Z men are 35 percent less likely than women in their cohort to return to work after a mental health leave. The two studies were not designed together, so the link between them is suggestive and not proven.

Retention pressure is already high. Gallagher's benchmark data shows turnover climbing as employers plan growth on constrained workforces, and HRD America reported that HR may have it backward on who takes caregiving leave.

The Standard recommends post-leave surveys, manager check-ins, flexible work arrangements and structured return plans, and it points to existing employee resource groups as a channel for connecting returning employees with support. That list rests on the study's finding that employees and HR agree reintegration is a significant challenge across the workforce and that the transition continues beyond the first day back.