Ideas for Workplace Wellbeing
Wellbeing in the workplace is essential to create a healthy work environment, ensure employee satisfaction, and to boost productivity. Croner-i have put together a list of why and how you should invest in workplace wellbeing. Here are a few of the ideas they have suggested:
The CIPD identifies seven key areas of employee wellbeing:
- Health.
- Good work.
- Values/principles.
- Collective/social.
- Personal growth.
- Good lifestyle choices.
- Financial wellbeing.
Here are some ideas for wellbeing in the workplace ideas:
Health
- promoting healthy eating by having healthy snacks in the workplace or putting up posters in eating areas suggesting healthy alternatives for popular unhealthy snacks
- promoting walking meetings, so employees have a chance to move from their desks
- fostering a culture of safety at work and providing training and resources for employees
- offering free annual check-ups with medical advice
- establishing mental health champions, mental health first aiders and encouraging conversations about mental ill health.
Good work
- flexible working options to ease pressures from an employee’s personal life
- ergonomically designed offices and/or desks
- management training to ensure good line management
- promoting work-life balance
- fair and transparent bonus and incentive programmes.
Values/principles
- showing a clear commitment to health and wellbeing with an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
- holding charity events or encouraging volunteering through work
- engaging with the local community through sponsored events
- backing diversity and inclusion with diversity training days and diversity-friendly workforce policies, such as hours which suit working mothers
- holding a staff wellbeing day with ideas on how to improve company wellbeing.
Collective/social
- allowing everyone to feel heard and involved with regular group brainstorms and ideas sessions
- recruiting from within to build company relationships
- running an open forum to hear employees’ feedback when making a decision that will affect everyone in the business
- holding regular social events to inspire a feeling of belonging
- offering teamwork skills workshops.
Personal growth
- mentoring from peers or employees in other departments, allowing development, knowledge sharing or upskilling
- offering career and performance development planning software or services
- holding resilience training to improve personal development
- providing access to training platforms such as Udemy and Skillshare where employees can learn outside of work
- inviting prominent figures in your industry to give talks or run seminars.
Good lifestyle choices
- offer workout classes at work or subsidised gym memberships
- provide bike parking and changing facilities to encourage taking a bike to work
- provide standing desks or exercise ball seats as options
- if there is a canteen, offer and promote healthy choices
- run weekly/monthly cooking or recipe clubs.
Financial wellbeing
- holding work days focused on finances and saving
- offering debt counselling services
- providing a phased retirement programme
- making it a policy to pay all employees the national living wage
- offering a profit share scheme to allow employees to benefit from the company’s success.