Employee Wellbeing - by Lizzy Turek

Employee Wellbeing 

Maintaining wellbeing in the workplace is mutually beneficial to people, organisations, wider communities and the economy overall. According to the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development (CIPD): “Promoting wellbeing can help prevent stress and create positive working environments where individuals and organisations can thrive. Good health and wellbeing can be a core enabler of employee engagement and organisational performance”. Although there is wider understanding about the benefits of taking a holistic approach to workplace wellbeing, the CIPD report that there is an implementation gap with many organisations not fully embracing the health and wellbeing agenda. Employee wellbeing cannot be an add-on activity, it should be embedded in organisational culture, leadership and people management. (Wellbeing at Work | Factsheets | CIPD). 

Key elements of workplace wellbeing 

CIPD identified seven inter-related 'domains' of employee wellbeing with the underlying elements including examples of workplace initiatives and activities to support people’s health and wellbeing.  

Health

• Physical health - health checks, wellbeing benefits, health insurance protection, occupational health support, employee assistance programme. 
• Physical Safety - Safe working practices, safe equipment, personal safety training. 
• Mental Health - Stress management, risk assessments, conflict resolution training, training for line managers, managing mental health, occupational health.

Work Environment and Conditions

• Good line management - effective people management policies, training for line managers, sickness absence management. 
• Work demands - reasonable workload, flexible working, job satisfaction, work-life balance.
• Autonomy - allowing employees more flexibility to work in a way that suits them and giving them more control over job tasks, deadlines and when and where to do their work.
• Change management - effective communication, leadership, employee engagement, open and inclusive culture. 
• Pay and Reward - fair/transparent remuneration practices and non-financial recognition. 
• Working environment - ergonomically designed work areas and good working conditions.

Values and Principles

• Leadership - Values-based leadership, clear mission / objectives, wellbeing strategy, corporate governance. 
• Ethical Standards - Corporate Social Responsibility, community investment, volunteering. 
• Inclusion & Diversity - Valuing difference, cultural engagement, training for all staff. 

Collective/Social

• Employee voice - Good communication, consultation, involvement in decision making 
• Positive relationships - Appropriate management style, teamworking, and respect for employees . 

Personal Growth 

• Career Development - Mentoring, coaching, performance management, performance development plans (PDP), succession planning. 
• Emotional - Positive relationships, personal resilience training,  
• Lifelong learning - performance development plans, training, technical and vocational learning, challenging work. 
• Creativity - Open and collaborative culture encouraging innovation. 

Good Lifestyle Choices 

• Physical activity - walking clubs, lunchtime or after work yoga, charity walks. 
• Healthy eating - recipe clubs, healthy menu choices in staff canteen 

Financial Wellbeing 

• Fair pay and Benefit - pay above National Minimum/Living Wage, flexible benefits. 
• Retirement planning - Phased retirement options, pre-retirement courses 
• Employee financial support - Employee assistance programme offering debt counselling, signposting to external sources of free advice (Citizens Advice), access to independent financial advisers.

Wellbeing vs Covid-19 

The effect of the pandemic on people’s physical and mental wellbeing has risen to the top of the agenda. CIPD’s Health and wellbeing at work survey 2021 report found more than 80% of organisations were concerned about the impact of Covid on employees’ mental health. CIPD is encouraging employers to establish more of a holistic framework to support people’s physical health and safety, and mental health, and offer sources of help such as counselling, an employee assistance programme and occupational health services.  CIPD have produced a helpful guide to support employers Coronavirus Advice for UK Employers | Factsheets | CIPD. 

The value of Employee wellbeing 

The Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) recognised the importance of mental health and wellbeing in the workplace and created a permanent hub on their website providing a wealth of resources including presentations and podcasts. REC in partnership with Howden Employee Benefits & Wellbeing produced a white paper providing guidance and practical steps, reporting “Mental health issues are not good for employees or business. The government’s ‘Thriving at Work’ report into mental health estimated the cost of poor mental health to UK business at between £33 billion and £42 billion a year” (Download your copy here). Studies conducted by Deloittes have shown that for every £1 invested in wellbeing, you can expect to receive an average of £5 return on investment. However, Joanne Quinn (Founding Director of With You In Mind) argues “you cannot put a price on how invaluable this investment is in terms of building a healthy and engaged workforce with low stress levels” (View Joanne’s presentations on how to improve mental well-being at work for leaders, managers and individuals here Mental Health and Well-being: In focus: The REC).  

Research carried out by PricewaterhouseCoopers, commissioned by the Health Work Wellbeing Executive, found evidence suggesting a positive link between the introduction of wellness programmes in the workplace and improved business key performance indicators. PwC evaluated the evidence from 55 organisations in the UK that had implemented a variety of wellness programmes and initiatives and submitted this information to the Health Work Wellbeing Executive (Building the case for wellness (publishing.service.gov.uk). The below chart illustrates the benefits attributed to their wellness programmes in the UK: 

 Supporting Employee wellbeing 

All employers have a duty of care to support their employees’ wellbeing at the workplace and as part of its commitment to supporting the industry, REC has partnered with Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) to deliver training courses to become a Mental Health First Aider at work. Furthermore, organisations such as Well at Work have been raising awareness of mental health and wellbeing in the workplace and enabling staff to feel empowered with practical support, advice, information and toolkits. They do this through evidence based consultancy, training and tool kits all tailored and applied to each organisation’s unique needs and Well at Work – Workplace Wellbeing Training).  

In a previous article, we looked at what flexible working is, the benefits of hybrid working for organisations and its employees and provided some top tips on how to support flexible working arrangements and achieve a good balance (Flexible and Hybrid working - The New Normal? By Lizzy Turek | Thewlis Graham Associates).  

So the overall benefits of investing in employee wellbeing can lead to:  

• better employee engagement 
• increased resilience 
• reduced sickness absence  
• higher performance and productivity 
• lower staff turnover 

Lizzy Turek - Client Research Associate