Employee Well-Being and the Impact to Your Organization

Employee well-being refers to the overall state of employees’ physical, mental, social, and financial health, which can often be influenced by various workplace dynamics (e.g., workload, connections with co-workers and available resources).

While employee well-being plays a key role in employee retention, it also has a significant impact on business performance. As a result, it’s vital for organizations to be thoughtful about employee well-being and do what they can to foster a culture that promotes wellness.

Here are 10 ways to improve employee well-being at your organization:

1. Launch an Employee Well-Being Survey

To effectively harness the power of your employees, capturing their feedback can save you a considerable amount of time and energy.

Wellness survey templates can be found with a quick Google search and tailored to your team to keep the process fun and engaging. Additionally, surveys can provide long-term value for both employees and your organization.

2. Give Employees More Control Over How They Do Their Work

Research indicates that less autonomy regarding how work gets done is associated with poor mental health and higher rates of heart disease. Furthermore, a combination of high work demands and low job control significantly increases the likelihood of death from cardiovascular causes.

Small changes that offer employees more independence can play a crucial role in your organization, improving the well-being of your employees and increasing their performance on the job.

3. Keep Your Organization Adequately Staffed, Maintain Reasonable Workloads

High work demands like long hours or pressure to work quickly can take a substantial toll on employees’ health. In fact, studies show high demands coupled with low control can lead to depression, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.

Building your workforce to spread out duties is one way to prevent high work demands. While this may seem costly, employers pay a real price when employees are burnt out, absent, or quit.

4. Foster a Sense of Social Belonging Among Employees

Research shows that relationships at work are associated with lower psychological distress, an indicator of mental health.

For example, one study showed that when 911 dispatchers received weekly emails from supervisors encouraging employees to share affirming stories about their work, employees reported a significant decrease in burnout and were 50% less likely to quit.

5. Enable Continuous Learning

Continuous learning increases knowledge and skillsets among employees. It also enhances employee satisfaction, collaboration and engagement.

By highlighting continuous learning opportunities, you demonstrate to your employees that you care for their growth, which can boost morale and reduce turnover.

6. Promote Mental Health Awareness

Organizations are starting to understand the importance of mental health in the workplace. A recent report found that 91% of Gen Zs and 85% of millennials believe their employers should have a policy for mental health at work.

One example is Starbucks, which started a training program called “Starbucks Mental Health Fundamentals”. The program offers twenty mental health sessions to its employees and eligible family members.

7. Encourage Meditation and Exercise

Promoting a healthy lifestyle through meditation and exercise can greatly improve the well-being of your employees.

Following the pandemic, companies have begun to offer reimbursement on gym fees, which may range from 50% to 100%. Furthermore, it is common among both startups and big corporations to organize regular team sessions for yoga.

8. Hire and Promote Diverse Leaders

Promoting and hiring leaders from a variety of diverse groups, including LGBTQ+ and those with physical disabilities and mental illnesses, while providing them with a voice and executive support, will improve inclusivity, health, and wellness in the workplace. Policies, benefits, and resource allocation should address the concerns of these groups and serve to benefit all employees. 

9. Create a Special Committee

Organizations can create a special committee made up of a diverse group of employees that centers around the theme of health and well-being. This committee can be tasked with projects such as planning charity efforts, social events or “lunch and learns.” To keep the committee inclusive and fresh with ideas, consider limiting members to six-month terms of service.

10. Encourage Giving Back

Creating a culture of volunteerism within your company doesn’t just help others; it also improves your organization, according to a study from Deloitte. The research revealed that employers that encourage and promote volunteering boost employee morale, improve the workplace atmosphere and enhance the perception of their brand.