Here’s how you can change your workplace for the better!
For a lot of people in the workforce, the way they perform at work is how they perceive their value as a person. This has led to complaints of toxic work environments, burnout, and employee dissatisfaction. Say you work from 8:30 am until 5:00 pm. That’s a nine-hour day for most and multiply it by five, that’s 45 hours you need to spend in your workplace, so best believe it’s important to make sure it’s a happy and safe space.
In our opinion, having a healthy workspace is less about quick fixes and more about making sure you are creating long-lasting sustainable solutions.
Mental health and workplace happiness
If you were happy at work before but are finding yourself less impressed lately, you may need to consider how your work setup has changed. Perhaps you had adapted well to working remotely and now you don’t enjoy coming into the office. Perhaps your office environment leaves you feeling a bit anxious.
Saving your workplace environment
Employees are the backbone of any business. Yes, we say that the customer always comes first, but what’s the point if the people who are reaching your customers are completely miserable? There is none. That’s why brand owners and managers have to take steps towards making sure their employees’ emotional, physical, and psychological needs are catered to.
It isn’t only the emotional health of employees that matters. Employers are improving the way they assist their teams’ general physical wellness too. Considering most employees are left with little time after work to look after their health, it is imperative that employers find ways to slot this into their work schedule.
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1. Commitment from leaders
It all starts with getting leaders and major stakeholders in the business to start valuing employee wellbeing. It is not the staff’s responsibility to take on more work to allow their workspace to be a healthy, wellness-centred place.
The first call to action is making sure that leaders and managers commit to bettering their workplace. There needs to be clear evidence of this commitment that can be shown to employees, like a contract, document or address. Health and wellness need to be integrated into the business strategy, and this can only be done if leaders are directly involved.
2. Listening and communication
For employees working in huge companies, it’s easy to feel as if your voice doesn’t matter. Business owners need to remember that nobody knows their business like the people who are involved every single day of the week (and perhaps taking their work home with them).
That’s why employers need to make sure that employees have a sustainable point of contact that is actually effective. You need to involve employees and their representatives instead of merely ‘informing’ them of new changes.
3. Providing growth opportunities
How can we possibly expect employees to remain happy in jobs where there is no sign of progress or potential growth? We show employees that we value them by providing opportunities for development. This doesn’t necessarily mean instant promotions for everybody, but it does mean making sure your employees are learning, absorbing and becoming more knowledgeable about their industry.
This could involve sending employees on courses, providing in-house training, hosting seminars and creating career paths. If you have somebody suited to a newly available role in your company, why not hire from within? This boosts employee loyalty and lowers turnover.
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4. Facilitating work/life balance
At the end of the day, it all comes down to how you assist your workers in having a full, healthy life that isn’t ruined by a toxic work environment. Your employees have families, friends and hobbies just like you do and need to feel that they can enjoy these things guilt-free.
Social support, access to mental health resources and adequate counselling all play a big role in achieving this. Allow people to network and socialise and watch how their productivity soars through the roof.
This could also mean integrating physical wellbeing into the office.
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Getting it done
Getting started on revamping the way you do things at work is as simple as this: ask your employees what needs are and aren’t being met. Provide them with a safe space to do so and be prepared to listen and adapt.
Whilst you’re at it, why not consider giving all of your employees peace of mind by joining a Oneplan group health insurance policy? By providing your staff with excellent medical support whenever they need it, they are more likely to feel valued and secure working for your company. Getting health insurance for your employees doesn’t have to be expensive when you go through us – we offer competitive discounts for companies with over 50 employees. Get in touch with our team to find out more.
All the best on your journey towards happier, healthier employees.
Your Health Insurance Family
Oneplan