The phrase corporate wellness program might bring to mind offices supplying gym memberships or even staging company-wide competition between employees. While these can be helpful in promoting wellness, the ideal employee wellness programme is far grander in scope than just a focus on exercise. We live and work in an environment that pulls us in many directions, but the savviest businesses now embrace corporate wellness. The heart of the modern wellness programme is creating an environment that leads to an engaged, productive workforce.
Financial Wellness: Empowering Employees for Financial Security
About 60 percent of employees cite financial stress as affecting their mental and physical health, which could reduce performance and productivity. The American Psychological Association reveals that money and the economy is the primary cause of stress in the US. By providing employees with financial wellness programmes, corporations can help them be able to take control of their own finances and reduce stress-related consequences for them and possibly their families. Here are some ways to integrate financial wellness into your program: Invite someone to Give a Talk on a Financial Literacy Topic: Host a workshop on budgeting, saving for retirement, paying down debt, or something similar. Partnerships with banks and other online debt management tools can be useful Perks: Try to appeal to a broad range of potential employees by offering benefits such as pet-friendly workplaces, perks for new parents, disabled access, fun or challenging extra-curricular activities (eg, five-a-side football), community lunch or BBQ days, and weekend markets or pop-ups. Financial Advisor Access: Provide on-site financial advisors or financial planning services at reduced cost. (For further reading on the effects of financial stress on employee wellbeing, see our blog “The impact of financial stress on employee wellbeing”).
Prioritizing Mental Health: Fostering a Supportive Work Environment
Mental health awareness is growing, and for good reason – mental health problems like anxiety, stress and depression can have a profound impact on employee well-being, as well as productivity. There is no reason to shy away from discussing these topics openly. In fact, encouraging open communication about mental health and creating workplace environments where employees can seek help without fear of stigma can promote a positive cultural shift for everyone. Here’s how to prioritize mental health in your workplace: Mental Health Resources: Ensure that your staff have access to mental health support through Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) or mental health providers. Competency-Based Awareness and Training Programs: Developing direct and indirect workers’ knowledge of mental health problems and creating avenues for open, honest communication. Stress Management: Provide workshops or resources that support employees in learning stress-management techniques, including mindfulness meditation, yoga and so on. (There are also specific techniques to create a mentally healthy workplace, which we outline in our blog post ‘Creating a mentally healthy workplace: Strategies for supporting employee mental health’.
Work-Life Balance: Promoting Disconnection and Well-being
Maintaining a good work-life balance is a major concern of every employee, and having a high level of connectedness to work is not a recipe for a healthy lifestyle. The major reason given by employees who opt out of company social events is ‘burnout’. Showing you care for their well-being would involve implementing policies that maintain a healthy balance between the demands of work and their role as a father, mother and spouse. Here are some ways to encourage work-life balance: Flexible work arrangements: reduces commuting delays and uncertainty, and offers more control over family time through flexible schedules, telecommuting or the ability to work 10-hour days four days a week. PTO Policies with Vacation and Sick Time: Encourage employees to use PTO with generous PTO policies that provide appropriate vacation and sick time, and that frown upon work performed on vacation. Disconnect Outside Work Hours: Establish boundaries around out-of-hours communication and send messages to workers to log off from work emails and calls after work hours. (Discover other practices to promote work-life balance in our blog post ‘Strategies to promote work-life balance for a happier and healthier working life’).
Measuring Success: Tracking Progress and Impact
This isn’t a one-time wellness programme but a process that continually improves while tracking key metrics helps you measure programme successes and identify opportunities for improvement. Here are some key metrics to consider: Employee Participation Rates: Track participation rates in workshops, challenges, and other program initiatives. Track trends of healthcare utilization rates (eg, the number of doctor visits, prescription drugs used, etc). Employee Surveys: Conduct routine employee surveys on how satisfied they are with the wellness program and if there are any concerns. You can evaluate if the programme is effective and make changes based on data so that your corporate wellness programme continues to be useful and meets your employees’ current and changing needs. Invest in a corporate wellness programme that will help your greatest asset, your employees, remain vibrant, have a clear mind and an improved state of wellbeing in all aspects, from financial security to mental health, and enjoy a happy, healthy and productive workplace.
