Healthy Employees: An Important Factor In Workplace Productivity

The pandemic has had a widespread impact, deeply affecting people’s physical, mental, and emotional well-being, with workplaces experiencing some of the greatest disruptions. As businesses and employees adapt to remote and hybrid work environments and face new stressors, fostering a healthy workplace has become crucial.

In the following sections, we explore why employee health should be a core focus of organizational goals and how to achieve it.

What Does Employee Health Mean?

Employee health encompasses not just physical well-being but also mental and emotional stability. This involves the ability of employees to handle workplace pressures and manage stress and emotions effectively, in addition to being physically healthy. Employee health is vital whether your team is working remotely, in a hybrid setup, or in a traditional office.

Though there are costs involved, investing in employee health is ultimately more economical for organizations. Failing to support your employees’ health can result in increased insurance claims, sick leave, compensation expenses, and other costs.

Neglecting to support your employees’ health can lead to mounting insurance claims, sick pay, compensation costs, and the like.

In the US alone, companies lose billions of dollars due to employee absenteeism and reduced productivity. Even when unwell or stressed employees are present at work, they may not be fully productive and might only be working to avoid repercussions from their supervisors or losing their pay and benefits.

Healthy Employees: An Important Factor For Workplace Productivity

Compromised employee health puts companies in a tough financial position. Companies need to plan an environment that prioritizes healthy employees on the same scale as expansion plans or other strategic business decisions.

Prioritizing Healthy Employees

A company culture that promotes employee health has the following goals:

Increasing job satisfaction and morale
Letting employees feel appreciated and respected
Reducing workplace absenteeism and presenteeism
Retaining staff and crafting better growth opportunities
Maintaining an atmosphere of unbiased processes, inclusivity, equality, and diversity
Promoting healthy interactions between coworkers and top management

Companies that prioritize and invest in employee health demonstrate that they recognize and value their employees’ contributions to the business and their role in its success.

A workplace that pushes its employees to be more productive without managing their health can fall into a vicious cycle. Ill and exhausted employees rarely work to the best of their abilities.

sick leave rates go up
employee turnover increases
workloads multiply
overworked employees are pressured to pick up the slack

Alternatively, a company that prioritizes its employees’ health promotes an engaging, inspiring, and motivating atmosphere in the workplace. Team members meet their targets and deadlines, are productive, and have a healthy work-life balance, which contributes to the company’s success.

What Is The Role Of Employee Health?

Research by the Health Enhancement Research Organization (HERO) shows that employee health is crucial for boosting productivity, morale, engagement, and overall corporate success. The survey revealed that over 90% of businesses observed improvements in work quality and quantity after prioritizing employee wellness.

On the other hand, neglecting employee health leads to increased sickness, lower engagement levels, burnout, and stress. With additional concerns from geopolitical tensions and disease outbreaks, employees are struggling more than ever to cope.

As a result, many companies are now focusing on wellness and maintaining a healthy workforce. After all, the success of an organization lies on the shoulders of its workforce.

The success of an organization lies on the shoulders of its workforce.

Factors In The Workplace Environment That Affect Employees’ Performance

Many elements in the workplace influence employees’ health, productivity, and performance. Conducting anonymous surveys allows companies to understand employees perceptions and feelings about their work environment.

This method encourages truthful feedback, giving HR teams and employers valuable insights to create and implement strategies that enhance employee health and wellness. Surveys also provide a confidential way for employees to voice concerns or suggestions for improving their work environment without fearing retaliation.

Here are some factors that affect employee performance.

Not Investing in a Digital Work Environment

Digital tools help employers:

train employees on workflows and processes
conduct workshops and skill development programs
communicate in real-time
track productivity and performance metrics

They have become even more critical in the new normal of remote and hybrid working. Without the right tools, employees can struggle with disjointed work environments that do not foster productivity and performance.

Management Style

It’s often said that the tone at the top trickles down to the bottom. Effective management inspires, enhances, and maintains high performance, boosting employee engagement and satisfaction.

Conversely, poor management can significantly hinder productivity, growth, performance, and morale. Companies should closely monitor how their departments are managed to determine if poor management is affecting employees’ health.

Physical Work Environment

Whether in office, remote, or hybrid arrangements, employees need physical settings conducive to work that helps them feel relaxed and positive. Corporate spaces such as Google and Facebook, for instance, have dedicated spaces to help employees unwind or feel at home with games and sports equipment.

Studies show that simply adjusting the temperature, lighting, and furniture arrangement in your office can positively affect your team’s health, mood, and productivity.

Check out this interesting study on how the concept of biophilia—a human’s innate connection to nature—can be integrated into offices to create a healthy working environment.

Corporate Culture

Every organization has its own unique corporate culture. For example, one company might emphasize “grittiness,” rewarding employees who work overtime and are always on call, while another company might promote a healthy work-life balance through its policies.

While there is no definitive right or wrong corporate culture, a misalignment between a company’s values and its employees’ preferred working styles can cause additional stress, impacting their physical and mental well-being.

Job Workflow and Processes

Employees who are stuck in mundane, repetitive workflows or aren’t consistently challenged may become bored easily, which can negatively affect their performance and productivity. Additionally, employees who feel undervalued are at risk of experiencing depression, isolation, and a lack of motivation.

Benefits Of A Healthy Workforce

You don’t need a survey or statistics to tell you that employees who love their job and what they do are often happier and healthier. Two things matter most when encouraging high performance and productivity — how employees feel and how serious employers are about their well-being and health.

It’s simple—healthy employees significantly contribute to a company’s bottom line. Here’s how:

Cuts major costs: Companies can save tons of money on healthcare costs by providing lower insurance rates to those who fall sick less often. This could encourage employees to take care of their health, take fewer sick leaves, and file fewer claims related to major illnesses.

Research by the National Council on Compensation Insurance showed that a growing number of obese workers filed expensive compensation claims compared to non-obese workers, amounting to billions of dollars spent every year by companies.

Better productivity and performance: Employees who follow a healthy and active lifestyle tend to feel good about themselves and are more productive. Companies that support their employees’ wellness through fixed working hours, paid compensation for overtime, two-day weekends, and health/wellness programs will see a remarkable shift in employee productivity and performance.

productivity and improvement in the workplace

Strong morale and image: Employees who feel valued and cared for at the office tend to have higher morale, which spills over into their family and social life. They are also more likely to speak well about their employer, which can boost a company’s image and standing in the community. Ultimately, when a company invests in its people, it invests in itself.

The World Health Organization notes that: “In addition to person-focused interventions, workforce health promotion initiatives have moved toward a more comprehensive approach, which acknowledges the combined influence of personal, environmental, organizational, community and societal factors on employee well-being.”

Talent acquisition: Hiring and replacing staff can be costly and time-consuming. As companies compete to recruit the best talent, they also need to consider what value they can add, so their employees stay back. Increasingly, people are driven by more than just salary when choosing a company.

To attract and retain talent, employees can offer appropriate healthcare, childcare, wellness/health programs, retirement benefits, personal education opportunities, and growth opportunities that set them apart from competitors.

According to this Aflac report, 60% of employees agreed to a job that offered lower pay but more benefits. Another 16% of applicants said they’d left or turned down offers because they weren’t happy with the benefits offered.

Ways To Encourage Employee Health

Thinking of starting a wellness program to encourage employee health? There are questions you’re going to want to ask and things to consider when evaluating a plan best for your employees.

Let’s look at a few simple but effective ways companies can nurture an environment of good health and wellness:

Practice What You Preach

Even though employees are off the clock during their lunch hour, this doesn’t mean you should neglect them. Lunchtime gives employees a chance to decompress and refuel. Don’t just tell your employees to eat healthy, but show them you’re serious about their health.

Lunch breaks that are at least an hour-long give employees enough time to eat at a steady pace without rushing. Ensure they step away from their stations to enjoy a well-deserved lunch. This will help them sustain their energy levels and concentration throughout the day.

Meanwhile, companies with cafeterias or pantries can promote healthy eating by:

Swapping fried and oily foods with baked snacks
Introducing freshly prepared salads and fat-friendly dressings such as olive oil, nut butter, or balsamic vinegar
Keeping a juicer in the kitchen and ditching packaged drinks
Placing a roomy fridge in the kitchen, so that employees can bring in home-cooked meals
Offering fruits, nuts, or protein bars to encourage mindful snacking during breaks

Managing Stress

Long hours, unpredictable situations, and deadlines contribute to workplace stress. Studies show that stress is one of the leading causes of absenteeism in the workplace. Implementing programs that help employees manage stress can boost mental and emotional health, productivity, and morale.

Stress is one of the leading causes of absenteeism in the workplace.

Here’s how you can help your team manage stress:

Conduct on-site meditation classes
Distribute free resources like books and pamphlets on stress management
Take employees on weekend retreats
Host talks with stress management experts
Implement four-day workweeks
Give employees the option of working from home instead of spending long hours in the office
Create a childcare space for new parents
Dedicate spaces where employees can decompress, such as a small library

Get Moving

More companies are offering fitness programs or providing gym facilities to promote better health among their employees. However, when planning a fitness program, it’s important to understand your team’s preferences and abilities to encourage participation. For example, some people may prefer yoga, while others may prefer more strenuous activities or team sports.

Here’s how you can promote physical fitness programs in your workplace:

Distribute sign-up sheets for group workout sessions in or out of the office
Establish a dedicated workout space in the office so employees can work out when time permits
Organize company-led marathons or walkathons
Organize after-work yoga classes
Subsidize gym memberships or provide discounted fitness sessions with a fitness coach
Implement incentive-based programs that encourage employees to meet personal health goals

Mental Health Checks

Given the stigma that unfortunately still surrounds mental health, some employees may be too embarrassed to ask for help. Companies that are open and supportive of mental health initiatives encourage their employees to come forward and seek assistance on their own.

Here’s how you can implement and foster a compassionate and positive atmosphere:

Organize free private consultations with a mental health professional
Arrange mental health seminars with experts
Sign up to become a StigmaFree company through the National Alliance on Mental Illness
Provide safe channels for employees to raise mental health concerns
Share mental health content on office chats or bulletin boards

Remote Wellness Initiatives

Remote workers can feel isolated from team members, leading to stress and depression. Extend the same benefits to employees working from home to keep them engaged, active, and interested in your new wellness programs. Encouraging collaboration between team members in person or online will also reduce feelings of isolation.

Frequently Asked Questions on Employee Health

Do Healthy Employees Perform Better?

Employees who maintain healthy lifestyles tend to perform better and manage their stress and time more efficiently. They are more likely to have better energy levels and are less likely to get sick.

Are Healthy Employees Happier?

Various studies have highlighted that healthy employees tend to be happier than unhealthy employees. Illness, stress, and emotional and mental pressures can affect an employee, leading to depression and a lack of motivation.

Next Steps for Healthy Employees

It may seem overwhelming on figuring out how to put together a wellness program inside your organization. Here at WellSteps we’re here to help! We know that just taking the first step and looking at a demo of what we can do with you for your employees is the best way to get moving in the right direction.

Schedule a free demo with our team right here today!

Healthy Employees: An Important Factor For Workplace Productivity