Well-being at work is being cited as equally important to employees as salaries when it comes to attracting and retaining top talent. Creating a happy workforce is talked about a lot, but why is this the case and what can we do to increase employee well-being?
Why is Well-being the Hot Topic in Workplace?
Well-being of employees has become critical to companies due to the huge cost implications related to employee stress. 37% of all work-related sickness are due to stress, including anxiety and depression; costing UK employers an estimated £3.7 billion a year in absenteeism.
So, what can be done to increase well-being? Whilst financial rewards are important, it is surprisingly much lower on the list of priorities. And with that being said, here are our top tips for increasing employee well-being:
1. Communication
Create a workplace environment that allows employees to share how they feel through open lines of communication. It is important people feel that they can trust their colleagues and managers and that there is a clear process for managing stress.
2. Flexible Workplace
This doesn’t necessarily mean allowing people to work different hours, although this is proved to be positive on well-being, but it also can mean creating more breakout spaces to increase creativity and collaboration between colleagues. Flexible working encourages employees to forge relationships across a wider network, rather than with their immediate colleagues, which increases a sense of belonging and value.
3. Control
Allow employees to take ownership and control of how they work and where they work. Best way to achieve this is from the message and actions from senior management, especially when it comes to presentism, as it will encourage employees to follow their lead and submit their own ideas.
4. Innovation
Encourage an innovative culture whereby people’s ideas are valued and heard across the business and mistakes are not punished.
5. Community
Encourage participation in wider activities whether through a corporate social responsibility programme or charitable events. Helping others, especially outside the working environment, can help manage individual perspective.
6. Recognise and Celebrate Achievement
Create a culture of celebration by continually recognising the smaller achievements and employees who go the “extra mile”. This goes beyond awards and employee of the month schemes.
We hear more about the impact of stress at work, yet the number of cases has remained largely flat over the last five years.
By following the above tips, increasing employee engagement and focusing on your number one asset, people; employee well-being will be improved, in-turn creating a hugely positive impact on your business.
