Wellbeing and your workplace

Employer advice

Did you know research carried out by charity, Mind confirms that not addressing mental health at work can be costly to employers? In their research they found;

  • More than one in five people said they had called in sick to avoid work when asked how workplace stress had affected them
  • 14% had said they had resigned and 42% had considered resigning when asked how workplace stress had affected them
  • A third of staff felt they would feel unable to talk openly with their line manager if they were feeling stressed
  • 60% of employees say they’d feel more likely to recommend their organisation as a good place to work if their employer took action to support mental wellbeing

Creating a healthy workplace can not only make you more efficient as a business, but it can also boost innovation, creativity and employee engagement. A proactive approach to tackling wellbeing issues in the workplace can be beneficial to both the employer and employee.

How can your organisation promote a healthy workplace?

What's working? And what isn't?

Conduct an anonymous survey with your employees to find out exactly what wellbeing procedures are working and what can be improved. The survey can be split into various sections such as their thoughts on leadership styles, career development, flexibility, workload and training. You can also have questions based on their work relationships with colleagues and opinions on their work environment. An annual survey across the organisation can help you to review what is and isn't working and adapt accordingly.

Point of contact

Does your staff know who to talk to if they are having issues at work? Many organisations provide employees with a handbook which outlines grievance policies and procedures and explains what employees can do when they find themselves in a situation of distress. It's useful for employees to refer back to if they aren't sure on what to do and where to go, and shows you've thought through the challenges your workforce might face.

Incentives and social events

Social events are a great way to get employees to network and build positive relationships outside of the workplace. Social events can vary from anything such as a weekly pub session down the road to more active events like team building exercises in the park. Weekly prize draws, employee of the month awards and dress-down Fridays are a great way to keep employees cheerful and motivated.

Promoting a healthy workplace is not only beneficial to your current staff, it also provides a great culture for future employees to be attracted to when looking for a new role. BS Social Care are on hand to provide you with the advice in attracting and retaining new, skilled staff. For more information contact your local branch today.

.