The wellbeing of employees has been on the agenda for a while. However, after the events of the last few years it’s even more important that employers are looking out for their staff.
From the fallout of the pandemic meaning that demand is high for counsellors and mental health specialists to the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, there’s been a significant impact on our mental, emotional, and economic wellbeing lately. Even without these factors being in play, there is a lot that can affect our wellbeing.
As a business owner, it’s worth taking the time to address how your team is doing. Here, we look at why that is and introduce ideas that you can implement.
What Is Employee Wellbeing?
Employee wellbeing refers to the overall emotional, physical, economic, and social health of each of your employees. It encompasses things like your employees’ physical and mental health and how connected they are to others.
How satisfied they are with their career is also an important factor. How your team members feel about the work they do and the way they’re managed every day plays a significant role in their overall wellbeing.
Why Employee Wellbeing Is Important
While career wellbeing is important, all areas of a person’s wellbeing should be considered by employers. This is because they’re all connected.
For instance, if a staff member is finding their job hard, this can affect their mental health, causing them to feel stressed, anxious, or down. This, in turn, could affect their physical health. They might not eat well or lose sleep because they’re thinking about work all the time.
Alternatively, the physical health of a staff member might be causing them to find doing their job well difficult. They might not feel they can discuss this with you as they’re worried about not receiving sick pay if they take time off to get better.
As work is a source of income, employees’ financial wellbeing may suffer if they think they want to find a different job or worry about job security. Additionally, they might see relationships with loved ones break down because they’re unhappy.
From a business perspective, promoting good wellbeing for your employees is good for both your staff and your business. You’re more likely to see an engaged, productive team. This means they’re inclined to stick around, therefore reducing turnover and costly recruitment.
You’re more likely to attract talent, too. In fact, UK companies are introducing perks that centre on wellbeing to bring skilled workers into the fold.
How to Focus to Wellbeing in Business
F you’re looking at updating current wellbeing strategies at your organisation, or you’re introducing new ones, here are some ideas to inspire you:
- Communication
Holding regular 121s with employees where you make it possible for them to share their work-based challenges, along with anything else that might be concerning them is a great start. Also, ensuring that your HR team offers tools to help where managers might not be able to intervene is also essential.
- Make work comfortable
While many of us are working hybrid roles, creating an environment that people want to work in can go a long way. Have breakout rooms where staff can take a moment if they need to decompress. Have fruit delivered to the office so that there’s an opportunity to grab a healthy snack but also to do so away from the desk.
Consider the details too. Something as simple as having the heating on in winter and ensuring your office air con remains working during summer months can go a long way towards keeping your team happy in an office environment. If you’re in an industrial or commercial environment, as well as air con to cool your employees down, an extractor fan could be useful to help reduce moisture and odour.
- Social events
Get the team together for bowling, crazy golf, or a meal after work. This gives them a chance to unwind away from the everyday pressures.
- Praise and rewards
Remember to tell your team how much you appreciate them. Offer rewards and praise them when they do well.
- Benefits
Have a benefits package that’s helpful. Give them a wellbeing day once or twice a year, give them opportunities to volunteer in the local community. For inspiration, look at the benefits package your main competitors offer their staff.
