One of the most important things a company can do in today’s times is to make employee wellbeing a priority. With the modern world being so busy, burn out can happen quickly if a person’s work-life balance is off.  While it’s the employee’s responsibility to take care of him or herself, knowing that their employer is looking out for them will boost employee morale and incentivize employees to want to do better. Employee wellbeing is how a job’s stress levels, environment, and expectations affect overall health and mental wellness. Here are 7 ways you can implement employee wellbeing into your business strategy.

1. Give Them the Ability to Disengage

One of the biggest causes of work-related stress for people is not having the chance to disengage when they are off the clock. When employees are expected to respond to respond to emails, take phone calls, and/or work on projects when they are supposed to be out of the office, (whether it’s for the evening or weekend) they don’t get the opportunity to rest and recharge. In order to regularly show up and do their best work, employees need time to stop thinking about their jobs and attend to their personal lives. Some of them will feel obligated to work off the clock even when they are not asked to, therefore it’s important to make it clear that they are not obligated to be working on their personal time.

2. Offer Employee Appreciation Incentives

An employee who feels appreciated will always do more than what’s asked of him or her. That is why it’s essential to show them tokens of your appreciation. Every month or so, provide refreshments that employees can enjoy on their breaks. If an employee is going through a difficult time, send him or her flowers or a card signed by the whole team. Honor accomplishments by custom ordering a plaque or framed certificate. If an employee is doing well with sales or recruiting, offer them the incentive of an extra vacation day or purchase them a gift card. Just be sure incentives are offered to all employees, not just those who can deliver tangible results. Offerings like this will make them much more excited about coming to work every day.

3. Provide Health Related Discounts/Opportunities

Getting active will benefit employees in both their personal and professional lives. It is an overall mental health booster and will give them more energy to help them through their days. Offer to pay for part of a membership to a local gym. Offer a reimbursement plan for active wear. If you have the funds and space, create a workout room for employees to use during their breaks or after work. You could even hire a virtual trainer once a week for the entire office to participate in a movement session. Some companies even organize friendly weight-loss or get healthy competitions. This can also contribute to employee camaraderie which leads to a positive company culture.

4. Be Sure Employees Take Vacation

Did you know that more than half of Americans don’t use all of their vacation days in a year? While some companies offer payout for employees that don’t use them by a certain date, taking time away from the office is actually very important. Employees who never get away are more prone to sleep deprivation, illness, and burnout; which in turn leads to call outs and lower job performance. There are a number of reasons employees forfeit their vacation days, one of the biggest ones being that company culture discourages it whether directly or indirectly. This can look like high-level executives never taking time off, strict vacation policies, lack of communication around vacation policies, and/or negative talk about time off. As an employer, it is your responsibility that your employees know that they are entitled to take their vacations. Also be sure that someone takes at least a portion of their responsibilities while they’re away. This way they aren’t returning to a mountain of work when they get back.

5. Be Conscious of Scheduling and Turnaround Time

Have you ever heard of the term “clopening”? This is a term mostly applicable in service positions such as restaurants or retail where business hours are nearly all day. From an employee perspective, it is incredibly exhausting when you work the closing shift, just to return a few hours later to open. Some companies are notorious for giving employees fewer than 8 hours in between shifts which doesn’t take into account their commute home and back nor their need to eat and freshen up. People get jobs to live, they do not live to work, so be sure that you are treating them like humans and not like machines.

6. Organize Company Outings

One thing that motivates employees to put their best foot forward is having events to look forward to. Doing things together as a company will ensure that employees disengage and enjoy themselves, at least for one day/night. If you have a team of mostly females, a spa day is always a popular idea. If you have a team of mostly males, a sporting event in the middle of the day or after work can be exciting. Just make sure that it’s an event that will truly be enjoyable for your employees- you can even ask for suggestions or vote on a few different options.

7.Allow Casual Dress Days

While this may not work in every industry, it can definitely work in most offices. The more formal the dress code is, the less comfortable the clothing tends to be. A shift in what employees are wearing can really change the vibe of the office for the day as people tend to\be less uptight the more casual their clothing is. Many offices have integrated casual Fridays into their business models and themed dress up days throughout the year. Even something small like this can have a massive impact on your employees’ mental health.

If your company is currently in need of employees, we at Award Staffing are here to help. Contact us here with any questions or inquiries.