Health and wellness in the workplace is a hot topic. It’s a known fact that happy, healthy employees are more productive; as a result, businesses are looking for new ways to engage and motivate their team through workplace wellness initiatives.
Proven to have an impact on employee retention, talent recruitment and ROI, it’s becoming more and more important for employers to create and implement a workplace wellness plan.
But for many businesses, the problem is knowing where to start. With so many different workplace wellbeing programs, ideas and strategies out there, companies are at risk of wasting valuable time, money and resources on wellness initiatives that simply don’t work.
For big or small businesses, workplace wellness programs are an important part of any HR strategy.
Work wellbeing activities include various aspects of work culture, such as physical, mental and social well-being. They are designed to have positive outcomes like decreasing absenteeism, increasing collaboration, sparking creativity, boosting productivity, and encouraging employee relations. Guess what? These can all have a positive impact on a business’ bottom line!
There are various workplace health and wellbeing activities and ideas to choose from; some are thought to be more effective than others, while some will work better for specific types of companies and not for others. If you’re looking for advice on your work wellness strategy, plus ideas for wellbeing activities for the workplace, read on…
Workplace wellness is important because healthy, happy employees are proven to create a more productive workforce. Workplace wellness activities are designed to boost engagement and employee satisfaction in order to increase output (ROI).
As well as improving work life for employees, workplace wellness has several business benefits too. Employers can profit from workplace wellness programs in various aspects of their business, from HR talent recruitment to brand reputation. So, employee wellness is not just a HR concept, but should form part of a wider business strategy.
Employee wellness programs are important for saving money by decreasing absenteeism, helping hire and retain talent, and increasing productivity.
Workplace wellness programs can generate savings in many different areas of a business, helping to decrease costs involved in recruitment and employee turnover. It’s generally agreed that workplace wellness programs, when executed well, generate more revenue than they cost to run.
In a word, YES! When executed well, there are plenty of workplace wellness program statistics to show that they can have great benefits for both employees and businesses, and are proven to increase ROI.
Although they are often associated with bigger businesses, it’s just as important for smaller businesses to work on creating employee wellness program ideas. Investing in employee wellbeing is an important part of growing a team, helping businesses to attract, hire and retain talented employees.
Below is a list of 11 workplace wellness ideas to help your business get started, whether you’re a small business just starting out, or a larger company looking to boost productivity and engagement through workplace health and wellbeing.
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1. Mental health initiatives
Mental well-being is vital for employee wellness and work happiness. Mental wellness initiatives at work can help to improve both brand reputation and staff loyalty.
There are a number of things that employers can do to show their interest in mental wellness at work; including free or discounted therapy sessions, and mindfulness or meditation classes. Try out a wellness workshop to help employees de-stress and bond with other team members.
2. Massages
An office massage can feel like a real treat; and something that many employees will reap the benefits from. For those who can afford it, corporate massage is a great addition to any workplace wellness strategy. Corporate massage companies like Urban Massage offer at-work massages to help relieve stress and boost productivity, and can be flexible to suit which times best suit you and your team’s schedules.
3. Exercise classes
Exercise is a great way for employees to relieve stress; and something that every business should offer in their workplace wellness plan. Whether it’s organising a team for 5-a-side football or arranging classes in the office such as yoga or pilates, encouraging staff to partake in physical activity at work is a great way to improve mental wellness at work. Plus, it doesn’t have to come at a huge expense – could one of your team members lead a lunchtime wellness activity at work?
4. Healthy snacks
Healthy eating can play a huge role in ensuring employee workplace wellness. A quick win for business of all shapes and sizes, having healthy snacks in the office has been proven to help improve concentration – not to mention that healthy employees are more productive! There are many different office fruit delivery companies in London and across the UK; as well as corporate workplace catering companies to deliver nutritious breakfast or lunch foods to your office.
N.B. From breakfast meeting grub to Friday lunch delivery, there is a range of workplace catering ideas that can help keep your team happy and healthy.
5. Comfortable work environment
Work environment is one of the most important things when it comes to workplace wellness. There’s nothing worse than a dark, uncomfortable office space that doesn’t have all the necessary tools. A healthy workplace environment – one that includes lots of light, working tech, and comfortable seats and desks – can help to reduce absenteeism and boost productivity. Plants can play a huge part in ensuring a healthy workspace and cost very little to add to your office. Companies like Lease-a-Leaf offer corporate services to help you deck out your office space with plants galore. These small wins can help boost health and wellness in the workplace.
6. Art and design
Like the workspace environment, the design of your office space can play a huge role in ensuring workplace happiness and well-being. It helps employees to feel a sense of pride in the company they work for, and it also contributes to a positive work environment.
7. Tea and coffee
No office space is complete without tea and coffee. In fact, the addition of free hot drinks to your office can have more of an impact than you might think on workplace wellness. The more variety, the better: if you can afford to invest in a communal coffee machine, a French press, or even a few different varieties of tea, it’s an inexpensive quick win to add to your workplace wellness strategy. Again, there are workplace catering companies who can help you out with this.
8. Social events
Social events can encourage employees to develop friendships with their colleagues and peers; something we know helps boost work wellness. Big or small, companies can hold social events such as guest speakers, movie nights or networking events; these don’t even necessarily need to be relevant to your business. Emotional wellness at work is often underestimated, and social events can really help to improve employee relations and engagement. Work.Life regularly host guest speakers and networking events at our coworking spaces; find out more here.
9. Flexible work hours
Modern working is going nowhere. Employees love the option to work flexibly, and it has been proven to have a positive effect on workplace wellness. Whether you are able to offer a work from home a day per month, or complete flexibility to work when and where best suits employees, it can be a great way to boost wellbeing and job satisfaction; and improve productivity and brand reputation.
10. Pet-friendly offices
Pet-friendly office spaces can not only be beneficial for boosting wellness but are also a great tool in talent recruitment and branding. Various studies have shown that allowing pets at work makes employees happier, less stressed and more productive. Plus, employees who have pets will have one less thing to worry about by being able to bring them to work. If you can’t commit to having pets in the office every day, why not nominate one day per month where you allow your staff to bring their animals to work.
11. Financial incentives
Financial incentives aren’t the be-all and end-all of workplace happiness (in fact, many employees prefer non-financial incentives such as team socials, coffee machines and healthy snacks) – but they can help to improve employee wellness at work. They can be a great way to motivate employees and make them feel that their work has real value. One tried-and-tested idea is whole company bonuses, which are only unlocked if every team reaches their target. These help to make everyone feel part of a team when everyone is working together to reach a common goal.
These are just some health and wellness ideas in the workplace – there are so many more things you could try. Why not survey your staff to find out what they’d be interested to see?
In order for health and wellness ideas in the workplace to be effective, they need to be led and championed by management. Collectively, managers and team leaders need to help create a company culture where employee wellness is a priority; by encouraging their team to look after their mental health and wellbeing activities at work.
In order to make sure that corporate wellness programs are successful, management also need to lead by example, by taking part in employee wellness initiatives like lunchtime meditation sessions and after-work yoga classes. By actively participating in work wellness programs, management will encourage employees to take part too.
For companies of all shapes and sizes, workplace wellness and mental health initiatives need to be top priority.
Wellness workshops, social events and other perks should all form part of an effective employee wellness at work strategy. If you’re planning on keeping your team remote, take a look at these 5 remote team building activities for virtual teams.
