09 Aug It’s got to go – we can’t afford it
Health and wellbeing is an important part of working life and overall most businesses are prioritising staff care which is great to see but what do you class as important and what is just ‘nice to have’?
Too often when businesses are having to look closely at finances and budgets, areas such as training and workplace wellbeing are often the first to feel the force of ‘cutting back’. But is this really cost effective in the long run?
Regarding workplace wellbeing, it really depends on how you perceive the value of what you have in place. I read an article in a business magazine recently where the author saw activities such as those we provide as ineffective.
Here at Hands On At Work, we disagree.
We acknowledge employee health and wellbeing is huge in scope and covers many HR aspects such as health and safety, workloads, workplace culture, the company ethos, the working environment and much more. We’ve always said you need to be in a good place to start, everyone from the Board of Directors to the varying levels of management and teams need to be as one to create an open and supportive place to work. What is the point of us being brought in to provide some well-deserved seated massage for example, if no-one feels able to leave their desk as they feel under immense pressure or they are worried it will be frowned upon.
Take the seated massage as an example. It is not just 15 -20 minutes in a chair having a massage, it’s physically moving away from your work, it’s time to switch off, it’s your employer saying we care enough about our staff to give them this break during their busy day. It’s beneficial both physically and emotionally to the person having the massage, it’s telling them they are valued and appreciated. All this has a financial value.
That yoga class at lunchtime in the boardroom isn’t just a few people having a relaxing time, it’s a social event bringing people together and practising a wellbeing activity they enjoy but may never get the chance to do outside of work because of lack of time or other commitments. It makes people happy.
If you make employees feel happy and recognised, they are likely to respond by being positive about their work, feel encouraged to do a good job and less likely to leave as their employer is a great business to work for. This has a long-term financial value in terms of recruitment and training costs.
Here is just a snapshot of some of the feedback we receive from clients:
“I think it sends the following message to staff – taking care of your wellbeing is part of our job role because we care and also because we recognise, you’ll perform your best when you feel good.”
“After only joining the company this week I had this, it was such a lovely welcome. Huge Thank you to all involved.”
“I enjoyed how the massage relieved my muscle tension, made me feel relaxed and felt energized to continue doing my work.”
“I felt happier to return to work.”
“It took that element of time for yourself which is so important when you are literally glued to your desk tasks, relaxing and rewarding at the same time.”
Supporting workplace health and wellbeing is important. Please don’t dismiss wellbeing activities as ineffective and just a ‘nice to have’, they are so much more than this. They play an important part in employee engagement, retention and motivation which tie in with the whole ethos of health and workplace wellbeing.