People suffering from common mental disorders (CMD) such as depression and anxiety are more likely to be economically inactive. Psychological therapies are highly effective at treating CMDs, but less is known about their impact on long-term labour market outcomes. Using national treatment programme data in England, NHS Talking Therapies (NHSTT), with unique linkage to administration data on employment and census records, we estimated the causal effects of NHSTT on employment and earnings. Overall, completing treatment led to a maximum average increase of £17 in monthly earnings (year two) and likelihood of paid employment by 1.5 percentage points (year seven). Those ′Not working, seeking work′ saw a maximum average increase in pay of £63 per month (year seven) and likelihood of paid employment by 3.1 percentage points (year four). Our findings demonstrate the economic benefits of treating CMDs, and how investing in mental health can impact labour market participation.

KR, ES, MR, EO, TD, DA and VN declare no competing interests. RS held an unrelated honorary position with NHS England, and their time was compensated through financial support to the employing institution. RS is also supported by the Royal College of Psychiatrists and the NIHR.

This project was funded by the Cabinet Office and HM Treasury Evaluation Task Force's Evaluation Accelerator Fund (2023 to 2024) and by HM Treasury's Labour Markets Evaluation and Pilots Fund (2024 to 2025). ​

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The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below:

The National Statisticians Data Ethics Advisory Committee of the UK Statistics Authority gave ethical approval for this work (NSDEC23(18)).

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The source data are not publicly available and are subject to controlled access due to their sensitive nature. Census 2011 and death registration data are available through the Integrated Data Service (IDS). Details of the application requirements and process, and the use of data, are available at https://integrateddataservice.gov.uk/how-to-access-the-integrated-data-service. The NHS Talking Therapies dataset is held by NHS England and can be accessed through the NHS Secure Data Environment: https://digital.nhs.uk/services/secure-data-environment-service.