What Is Employee Wellbeing and Why Is It Important?

 

What is employee wellbeing?

Employee wellness is initiatives, practices, and policies that focus on enhancing and sustaining employee physical, mental, emotional and economic factors. This includes how they interact with colleagues, the choices they make, and the resources available to them. Having a safe, supportive, and encouraging work environment is key to creating a positive culture that fosters employee wellbeing (Marinaki, 2020).

Types of Employee Well-being

1. Social wellness‍

Humans thrive in social settings and working in groups have many advantages. Increased productivity, a stronger work culture and improved employee retention. Employers should create programs to help employees build relationships, make them feel valued, and keep them involved in company goals. This should be done on a quarterly or annual basis.

2. Emotional wellness 

As an HR manager, it is important to be aware of the signs of burnout in employees, and to encourage an open conversation about mental health. Working from home has created a blurred line between work and personal life, causing employees to work longer hours and leading to an unhealthy work-life balance. It is essential to recognize these issues and work to create a more supportive work environment.

 3. Environmental wellness

To maintain a healthy work environment, pay attention to the organizational culture. Factors such as overly-long work hours, unrealistic expectations, and tight deadlines can all lead to a negative work atmosphere. Recognize any signs of a damaging work culture by listening to employees' issues and evaluating the relationships between managers and coworkers.

 4. Financial wellness

According to PricewaterhouseCoopers, (2022) Employee Financial Well-being Survey, 35% of Americans are so concerned about their finances that they find it hard to plan for the future. Financial worries are the primary source of stress for many employees. To better support and care for your staff, it is beneficial to have a financial planning program or advisor that can help provide financial security and peace of mind. 

5. Physical wellness

These issues can range from a sudden medical condition, sleep deprivation, or too much time spent sitting at a desk. To help manage these issues, you could provide workers with yoga sessions, physiotherapy, and health and dental insurance.

Kaikhosroshvili, (2023).

Strategies to Improve Your Employees’ Health and Well-Being

•      Provide staff with the freedom to control the tasks they complete and how they perform them.

•      Offer employees the option to decide when and where they complete their work.

•      Staffs have a predictable schedule.

•       Empower employees to identify and address workplace issues.

•       Ensure that you have enough personnel within your organization to be able to handle the    workloads efficiently.

•       Staff members should be supported by their managers in the organization.

•       To create an environment where employees feel accepted and supported by their colleagues.

Kelly, Berkman, Kubzansky, and Lovejoy, (2021)

Reasons to make wellbeing a top priority in the organization

1. Higher Performance Levels

2. Improved Employee Morale

3. Low Employee Turnover

4. Reduced Health Risk 

5. Attracts Top Talent 

6. Builds Employee Camaraderie

Kaikhosroshvili, (2023).

Wellness activities to incorporate into corporate health program

1. Walking meetings - Walking meetings are a great way to get people up and out of their chairs during the workday.

2. Meditation breaks – Taking 10 min Meditation breaks and no-talk times help employees reduce stress and refocus their energies for better productivity.

3. Fitness challenges - To promote a healthy lifestyle, organizations can offer yoga classes, track the number of steps taken with pedometers or have fitness challenges with a healthy prize for the winner.

4. Cooking classes - Healthy eating is just as important as fitness for maintaining employees. Cooking classes taught by a professional chef can help employees learn how to prepare nutritious meals.

5. Wellness challenges - In addition to physical activities, employees can also benefit from health and wellness challenges. For example, encourage employees to drink eight glasses of water and get seven hours of sleep every night. Moreover, they can also take on a smoking cessation challenge or financial wellness challenge such as cooking meals at home. This will improve dietary health and      budgeting.

6. Flu shots - Providing flu shots is a good way to emphasize the importance of prevention when it comes to health and wellness activities at work.

7. Employee surveys - As part of your employee wellness program, it is essential to have a system for gathering feedback from your staff. This will ensure that you understand what is successful and what areas need to be improved, and it will also help to increase engagement in the program.

Rise, (2019).

Institute for Health and Productivity Studies, JHU, (2015)

Conclusion

Incorporating wellbeing activities into the workplace is an excellent way to improve employee performance, morale, health and overall wellbeing. By offering a wide range of activities such as walking meetings, meditation breaks, fitness challenges, cooking classes and wellness challenges, employers can create an environment that supports healthy living. This encourages employees to be their best selves. Furthermore, these activities can foster positive relationships between colleagues, build a stronger team culture, and create a more productive and enjoyable workplace for everyone.

Reference list

Institute for Health and Productivity Studies, JHU (2015). Extraordinary Workplace Wellness Programs. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-QbV_OstxQ [Accessed 16 Apr. 2023].

Kaikhosroshvili, K. (2023). Employee Well-Being: Definition, Tips & How To Improve It in 2022 | Zavvy. [online] www.zavvy.io. Available at: https://www.zavvy.io/blog/employee-wellbeing [Accessed 15 Apr. 2023].

Kelly, E.L., Berkman, L.F., Kubzansky, L.D. and Lovejoy, M. (2021). 7 Strategies to Improve Your Employees’ Health and Well-Being. [online] Harvard Business Review. Available at: https://hbr.org/2021/10/7-strategies-to-improve-your-employees-health-and-well-being?registration=success [Accessed 15 Apr. 2023].

Marinaki, A. (2020). Employee wellbeing: Caring for your people. [online] Recruiting Resources: How to Recruit and Hire Better. Available at: https://resources.workable.com/stories-and-insights/employee-wellbeing-caring-for-your-people#:~:text=What%20is%20the%20definition%20of [Accessed 15 Apr. 2023].

PricewaterhouseCoopers (2022). 2022 PwC Employee Financial Wellness Survey. [online] PwC. Available at: https://www.pwc.com/us/en/services/consulting/business-transformation/library/employee-financial-wellness-survey.html [Accessed 16 Apr. 2023].

Rise (2019). 8 Wellness Activities for Your Corporate Health Program | Rise. [online] Rise. Available at: https://risepeople.com/blog/8-activities-to-incorporate-into-your-workplace-wellness-program/ [Accessed 16 Apr. 2023].