What Is Employee Wellbeing and Why It's Important?

What Is Employee Wellbeing and Why It's Important?

Businesses thrive when they have a healthy and physically fit workforce.

Wellness in the workplace is an integral part of a productive and successful business. When an organization prioritizes its workers’ health and happiness, it creates a more positive and productive work environment and reduces employee stress. Employee wellbeing benefits the company in various ways.

The term “wellbeing” describes not only one’s emotional and physical health but also more nuanced states of being, such as one’s level of contentment and dedication.

The Definition of Employee Wellbeing

The term “employee well-being” refers to the state of mind, body, heart, and wallet of your workforce. It depends on several variables, including their interactions with coworkers, their choices, and the resources at their disposal.

Work conditions such as hours, pay, and safety at the workplace all affect how healthy employees feel. While this topic will naturally vary from person to person, it is essential to note that an optimal level of employee well-being promotes a healthy and productive work environment. The happiness of an organization’s workers can be affected by many different things.

The stress of personal and household matters like housing, health, and relationships impacts work productivity. Employers can recognize they can’t be responsible for their workers’ actions outside of work without abdicating responsibility for their own.

Revealing the Importance of Employee Wellbeing

The recent COVID-19 outbreak has prompted many businesses to recognize the link between employee health and productivity. Workers were upset and anxious, so companies had to figure out how to meet their employees’ growing emotional needs.

Psychologists, in particular, have cautioned against quarantine because it can increase mental illnesses like depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. So, many businesses have begun making contingency plans for employees to return to work after the COVID-19 outbreak.

1. Decrease in Sick Days and Medical Expenses

Business owners began to see that preventing burnout, stress, and illness among workers was more profitable than dealing with them after the fact.

In particular, the employees’ inactivity raises the risk of diabetes, hypertension, and other conditions. Also, those who report feeling burnt out on the job are 63% more likely to call in sick. It means that absenteeism costs to businesses are directly proportional to the state of employees’ mental health.

Companies began introducing wellness programs as a result of their many advantages. Employee wellness programs have been shown to save businesses money, regardless of how broad or narrow in scope, they may be.

2. Better Performance from Workers

Research shows that 85 percent of businesses claim their employee engagement has increased thanks to wellness programs. When a program to improve workers’ health and happiness is put into place, people feel more a part of the company, experience positive changes in their physical well-being, and report higher levels of subjective well-being.

Increased levels of employee engagement can be attributed to all of these factors. However, good feedback and recognition practices also affect employee engagement. You should take a comprehensive approach to increase employee engagement in your company.

3. Productivity Increases in the Workplace

Smokers are twice as likely to call in sick, and obese workers take three to six more sick days per year than average-weight workers. However, better stress management reduces burnout. When workers are happier, they work harder and produce more.

4. Increased Satisfaction Among Workers

Employee morale can be significantly increased by implementing wellness programs, such as workshops on mental health or a fitness competition between departments or teams.

5. Alluring Company Image

The majority of businesses have implemented wellness programs to attract and keep top talent. Competition in the job market is fierce, and top performers have many options when deciding where to apply their skills. If you want to hire talented people who will propel your company forward, you need to offer them the kinds of health and financial benefits that appeal to them.

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We have some exciting news at Zarmac Benefits! We are extremely pleased to announce our merger with Marquee Benefits Inc., a highly respected benefit and pension solutions consultant based in Barrie, Ontario. Our newly combined firm will be conducting its practice as Marquee Benefits Inc., effective February 13, 2024.

Marquee Benefits shares the same values as we do. A genuine approach based on extensive knowledge of the industry and genuine desire to help create the right benefit solution for your organization. Please feel free to connect with us if you have any questions.

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