Understanding the importance of Employee Wellness Programs at the workplace
The success of an organization and a business depends on employee wellness. It has an effect on a workplace’s culture, resources, productivity, and, ultimately, its financial performance.
As a result, employee well-being, both physically and mentally, is a bigger concern. In actuality, it serves as the cornerstone for a company’s expansion, stability, strength, and sustainability.
The Stigma around Mental Health
More than half of the people with mental health illness do not seek help for their condition, mostly due to the fear of being judged or treated differently in the society. Stigma not only affects the people dealing with mental illness, but also the ecosystem around them that consists of their family and friends.
Covid-19 clearly has exacerbated the situation and led to a massive hike in the percentage of people living with stress and anxiety. In a world, where there was already too much unspoken about mental wellness and illnesses, the pandemic added fuel to the fire and the statistics that we see are just the tip of the iceberg.
Deloitte’s Mental Health in workplace Survey-2022
A recent study by Deloitte aimed to assess India’s current state of mental well-being amongst the corporate workforce and the challenges in managing the same. The Mental Health in the workplace Survey-2022 was conducted with about 3995 respondents across 12 key industries and demographics.
The results of the survey depicted a massive rising burden amongst the White-collar workers, with more than 80% workers being affected by at least one adverse symptom. Amongst the commonly experienced symptoms, those related to depression such as sadness, loss of interest, tiredness, difficulty in concentrating & poor decision making emerged as the most reported mental health symptom amongst more than 59% of employees. This study pointed towards the inclusion of holistic and comprehensive mental health policies and solutions in place.
Corporate Wellness Programs
Employee wellness programs can provide comprehensive and sustainable solutions for anxiety and stress management, leading to positive impact on organizations and individuals.
Some benefits of these employee wellness programs can be summarized as follows:
- Improved Physical health of employees
Through efforts like exercise challenges, nutrition education, and access to gym facilities, wellness programmes encourage leading better lifestyles. This may result in decreased medical expenses, less absenteeism, and greater productivity.
- Improved Mental health of employees
Programmes for employee wellbeing frequently incorporate mindfulness exercises, stress management techniques, and mental health counseling. These programmes can enhance general wellbeing and employee resilience by addressing mental health issues and offering resources for stress management.
- Higher Productivity
Employees who are happy and in good health typically produce more. Employees who participate in wellness programmes can maintain their peak levels of energy, attention, and performance by attending to their physical and mental health demands.
- Improved employee retention
Offering thorough wellness programmes can improve employee retention and loyalty. Employees are more likely to stick with an organization for the long run when they feel valued and supported.
- Better Work-Life balance
Initiatives like flexible work schedules, support for work-life balance, and access to tools for juggling personal and professional obligations are frequently included in wellness programmes. These services encourage better work-life balance, which raises job satisfaction and improves general well being.
- Enhanced Brand Image
Businesses with a focus on employee wellness and that make investments in wellness initiatives frequently have a good reputation as employers. This can help employers stand out in the employment market, recruit top personnel, and improve corporate branding.
- Reduced Absenteeism
Wellness programmes encourage healthy habits and illness prevention, which helps to lower absenteeism, in turn leading to an overall increased efficiency and productivity.
Conclusion
Successful and sustained change requires that employees understand their own state of mental health and well-being, while also being sensitive to the needs of their colleagues. Organizations should keep finding potential solutions to enforce wellness measures to empower and uplift their own people.
Good health and great performance begins in the mind. Begin your wellness journey.