COLUMN: How to sustain employee wellness in your workplace - all you need to know!

With it having been National Workplace Wellbeing Day on Friday, it’s a good time to shine a spotlight on staff wellbeing.

Whether you are a business owner or an employee within a company ensuring your health and the health of your staff is priority.

As Sir Richard Branson says, “Take Care Of Your Employees And They’ll Take Care Of Your Business”.

So, let’s take this a step further and rather than having just one day to embrace workplace wellbeing, let it be something that is sustained all year round.

After all, healthier and happier staff create a positive working environment.

Here nutritionist Laurann O’Reilly explains some of the benefits of having a wellness programme as well as strategies as to how you can sustain employee wellness within your workplace.

The Benefits of Workplace Wellbeing Programmes

Most workplaces within Ireland and internationally have already progressed to having an
Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) strategy. This is particularly important due to the issue of climate change and the need to protect the environment. However, it’s equally important to focus on the ‘social aspect’ and protect the health of employees too.

- Improved Social Connection: After the social isolation of our long lockdown, we now more than ever require a greater need of social connection and whilst many staff still work remotely, providing online and onsite social events and activities can provide staff with a greater sense of inclusion and belonging within their workplace.

- Reduced Absenteeism: Studies have found that companies which implemented comprehensive wellness education and programmes resulted in a 14-19% reduction in absenteeism. By providing staff with the knowledge, skills and opportunities to improve their health and reduce stress, this in turn results in improved immunity and less days off due to illness.

- Reduced Staff Burn Out: As many workplaces can be fast paced and often demanding on top of the stresses of everyday life, having health promoting and stress reduction strategies in place to support staff can play a major role in preventing the dreaded burn out. As leadership and business strategist Greg McKeown says “burnout is not a badge of honour”

- Improved Productivity: Improved employee health can result in higher levels of energy and lower levels of stress. This can in turn have a positive impact on overall work engagement and productivity.

- The Wider Impact: The effects of wellness education also translates outside of the workplace and into the home. As IBEC state “improved wellbeing has a far-reaching impact, not only for your employees, but for their families and communities too”

Sustaining Staff Wellness Within Your Workplace

- Ask The Staff: One way of really tailoring your wellness programme to the needs of your staff is to ask them what they need in terms of support, skills training and activities to provide a health promoting work environment.

Tip: This could be done by providing staff with a simple questionnaire

- Staff Don’t Be Afraid To Ask: If you are a staff member and feel that you and your team could benefit from wellness activities or training, don’t be afraid to ask. Afterall, you are far more productive when you are functioning at your best.

- Creating Opportunities For Movement: This is particularly important for those who have desk-based jobs. One large US study found that workplaces with an implemented wellness program had an 8.3% higher rate of employees engaging in regular exercise. Workplace physical activities are not only great for weight maintenance but also helps to maintain healthy bones, joints, helps to carry oxygen around the body as well as producing stress booting endorphins.

Tip: This can be achieved through activities such as steps challenges, workplace fitness events and online or onsite guided fitness classes.

- Ergonomics: Improving Your Work Set Up: It’s important to keep in mind that we spend a great deal of our day in our working space. “Ergonomics aims to create safe, comfortable and productive workspaces”. Dohrmann Consultancy explains how when designing a workspace, it’s important to consider “a person’s body size, strength, skill, speed and sensory abilities (vision, hearing)”. Adjustments can then be made to meet each individual’s needs.

Tip: Think of adjustments that you may need such as having a comfortable and supportive chair and raising your laptop to eye level to reduce neck pain.

- Reducing Stress & Building Resilience: Both work and life can often be demanding so it’s important to gain those valuable skills which can teach us how to manage our time, stress when it arises and how to achieve a healthy work-life balance. As IBEC states it’s important to “take a moment to rebalance and refocus on supports that will benefit employees' social, mental, and physical wellbeing”

Tip: Tools and activities such as guided meditation, yoga, mindfulness and learning breathing techniques can often be done onsite or remotely

- Providing Nutrition Education: We can often underestimate the importance of healthy eating in terms of staff wellness. Nutrition not only plays a key role in providing energy for the working day, but it is also essential for regulating our blood sugar levels (preventing the afternoon slump and sugar cravings), providing essential nutrients to combat stress, maintaining a healthy immune system, influencing our mood, memory, concentration and overall performance.

Tip: If you are a staff member or company and would like a nutrition talk or workshop within your workplace, which is specifically tailored to the needs of your staff, contact Nutrition By Laurann at info@nutritionbylaurann.ie or see https://nutritionbylaurann.ie/corporate-nutrition-ireland/