Natasha Wallace
According to the Association of Accounting Technicians, British workers spend an average of 3,515 full days at work during their lifetime.
So it comes as no surprise to find out that nearly 1 in 7 people experience mental health issues in the workplace.
British entrepreneur Richard Branson is a huge believer in employee wellbeing and explained during a Forbes interview how this is the foundation creating a healthy company culture:
“The key is just to treat your staff how you would like to be treated. People want to work on projects that mean something to them and be surrounded by colleagues who treat them with the respect they deserve. If all companies took this approach then employee wellbeing ratings would be much higher.”
So why is it more important than ever to implement wellbeing practices into a workplace?
Unfortunately, the pandemic leahas taken a huge toll on mental health, with 80% of organisations seeing increased demand for mental health support. In a recent survey of nearly 2,000 working parents, more than half (54%) said they wanted their employers to introduce specific mental wellness days.
Read on to find out our five principles for driving performance within the workplace by improving your employees’ wellbeing.
1) Recognise Employees for Their Achievements and Efforts
Recognising employees achievements and efforts creates a sense of belonging, raise morale and increase productivity. According to a recent study, 42% of employees say receiving greater recognition for their work would make them happier in 2021.
So what’s the best way of showing gratitude towards your employees? Here are a few tips:
- If you want to keep it simple, send an email to the employee to acknowledge all of the great work they’ve done.
- Express gratitude on social media or the company’s team board.
- Treat them to lunch.
- Take part in Employee Appreciation Day UK.
- Host a small staff party.
- Distribute gifts.
- Offer extra time off.
Showing a little appreciation for your employees goes a long way!
2) Host Fun Events for Your Employees
What better way to get your employees to relax and build better relationships?
Company events may be quite tricky to organise, but they certainly pay off. They are a great way of getting to know your employees better and are an essential part of any company’s health.
Here are some types of events that you may want to consider:
- Outdoor team building — Whether it’s organising an outdoor laser quest activity or a work sports day, these are great for getting everyone out of the office and into the fresh air.
- Virtual game events — If your office is completely remote, there are plenty of online virtual games you can play along with your team from the comfort of your home!
- Office bake-off — A great way of seeing everyone’s baking talents, raising money for charity and the perfect excuse to eat cake.
3) Introduce Flexible Work Hours
In today’s world, trying to juggle work, family and hobbies is not easy. So why can’t there be flexibility within a workplace?
Enabling employees to adjust their work hours or workdays accordingly allows them to fit in their personal needs, such as doctors appointments or family requirements. Flexible working results in a more healthy work-life balance that benefits everyone.
It also reassures your employees that there is trust. When you don’t enable employees to set their own schedules, their personal lives may be affected and they may feel like corporate robots, which may also take a toll on their mental wellbeing and productiveness.
4) Take Your Employee’s Mental Health Seriously
As we mentioned earlier in this blog, nearly 1 in 7 people experience mental health issues in the workplace. It’s common for people to leave it untreated; however, this can affect an employees motivation and general engagement within the workplace.
Your company can help by offering mental health and wellbeing programs to support employees, such as mental health awareness training, workshops or appointing mental health mentors for staff to talk to when they are struggling.
We recently talked about why wellbeing is a critical issue in the office and how it has impacted businesses during the pandemic.
5) Encourage fitness challenges
Exercise is a great way to encourage your employees to take on some healthy competition, boost their mental health, and, most importantly, stay fit.
Different types of fitness challenges can range from:
- Encouraging employees to sign up for charity marathons or fitness events.
- App-based challenges.
- Bike to work scheme.
- After-work yoga group.
- Stair-climbing challenge (great if you have lots of stairs in the workplace!).
