A complete guide to corporate wellness programs
The impact of global events and health crises have impacted most people’s everyday life and overall well-being. Workers are experiencing more burnout and higher rates of depression.
Listen to this article:
We want to look at how to effectively build a holistic corporate wellness program that will excite and engage your employees.
HR professionals are responsible for meeting their employees where they’re at from a solutions-oriented and abundant mindset.
Discover how to design and effectively implement a healthy workplace with an effective corporate wellness program.
You only have to look at the data and recent trends to understand how workers feel. The media has coined several new terms to describe these concerning trends.
You may already have a wellness program in place. What can you do to get employees consistently engaged with high attendance and participation?
You might have created short-term solutions like one-off health assessments or surveys. Maybe you brought in consultants that gave you ideas for a good framework.
These efforts look good on paper (or PowerPoint slides), but they don’t always create meaningful change, and they don’t stick.
Corporate wellness programs benefit employees through health and self-care. They focus on long-term preventative care rather than scrambling to problems once they’ve started.
According to research, 84% of employers reported that corporate wellness programs led to higher productivity and performance among their staff. “If you’re employed by a government entity, like a state government, you may have a lot more protections under the First Amendment than you would if you were employed by a private employer. A private employer is not subject to the First Amendment at all,” said Whelan.
Although it’s not enshrined in the Bill of Rights, there are some legal limits when it comes to private companies disciplining employees for statements made on personal social media accounts. This crucial distinction applies to what the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) calls “concerted activity.”
Starting (or improving) corporate wellness programs
Photo Illustration: Dianna “Mick” McDougall, Photo: Getty Images/AnVr
What employees are telling us
The great resignation
About a year ago, many companies of all sizes witnessed mass exits from their ranks, and workers suddenly felt called to leave the comfort and security of stable employment.
With so many furloughed employees, the ones left typically had to carry the torch of many, feeling overwhelmed and burnt out. They realized they needed to prioritize rest and self-care. They wanted to have the opportunities to travel, be active, and find new passions. The burden of full-time employment had kept them locked in an unhealthy cycle of overproduction and perfectionism.
The pandemic had an evident and understandable impact on employees’ physical and mental health. Many decided to take a break outright or find greener pastures elsewhere.
New technologies bring on new problems. When everyone had to go on lockdown, online platforms like Slack, Zoom and Microsoft Teams became essential tools overnight. Video calls and constant online communication became the new normal.
Stanford University completed a study on a new health problem that people started reporting, called zoom fatigue. Their findings noted four different causes:
The rise of zoom fatigue
Too much close-up eye contact
Having to look at yourself constantly during face time
Less mobility because of video calls
Increased mental burnout
Employees often had to cope with unnatural modes of human interaction without any breaks.
“Quiet quitting” isn’t new - the internet just gave it a new name, and this latest trend has cropped up among workers.
Quiet quitting describes the attitude of employees doing just enough to do the essential duties of their job. This term exploded because of a now-viral TikTok by creator Zkchillin. He states, “You’re still performing your duties, but you’re no longer subscribing to the ‘hustle culture’ mentality that work has to be your life. The reality is, it’s not. And your worth as a person is not defined by your labor.”
Quiet quitting
@zaidleppelin on TikTok
Photo Illustration: Dianna “Mick” McDougall, Photo: Getty Images/AnVr
What if HR professionals could specialize in wellness? Here are some solutions HR departments can do to boost employee well-being:
Corporate wellness solutions that encourage a cultural shift
The best way to build successful corporate wellness solutions involves empowering your employees to take ownership of their health. They will, in turn, find inspiration to take ownership of their work more enthusiastically than ever.
Health challenges or fitness challenges encourage team-building and drive positive competition. They can instantly see results by tracking their progress.
One compelling idea for a workplace challenge encourages employees to drink more water. Drinking eight glasses of water daily is the ideal that people strive for but can easily forget. You can turn it into a game to motivate employees to build better habits.
You can also use activity-tracking tools to measure progress for fitness challenges. Some good ideas could include a competition to attend the most fitness classes in a month. There can also be competitions around running or getting the most steps per day.
Some companies have even offered free access to meditation apps and encourage their employees to participate daily.
This article offers more creative ideas to offer fitness challenges at the office.
Workplace Challenges
People have busy schedules with limited hours and family responsibilities. It’s hard to pencil in sessions or classes. Also, these services can be costly.
Popular mind-body services that people enjoy doing include:
Paramedical Services and Yoga Classes
Yoga/Pilates
Massage Therapy
Reiki Healing
Meditation
Acupuncture
Offering health and wellness sessions for employees on-site will boost your corporate wellness program in several ways. Employees will feel more motivated coming into the office and have easier access to services that will improve their mental and physical health.
Consider hiring professional staff and managers to run these programs regularly. Permanent access to a highly trained wellness staff will encourage employees to try new things.
People usually think of fitness classes, healthcare, and work-life balance first when they think of corporate wellness programs. But financial health has such a massive impact on all of those things.
When people feel financially secure, their passion and drive can shine. If people struggle financially, they suffer from depression, anxiety, and even poor nutrition, leading to more significant health problems.
You can hire consultants who offer financial literacy classes or reimburse employees who seek that education from other institutions.
Financial Education
CEOs can build trust and community among their employees by encouraging them to improve their health and work-life balance. Corporate wellness programs have become just as essential as every other business component.
To boost productivity, employee retention, and employee satisfaction, encourage your company to enter the 21st century. Black-and-white solutions of the past can limit progress and creativity.
Future thinking leads to more innovative ideas. Holistic programs embody people’s needs in all areas of their lives off long-term gains and increased happiness.
HR professionals have the power and potential to shift the working culture completely. Think differently. Everyone’s health and well-being matter.
Become a wellness expert to build long-term solutions
Francis Scialabba
You may already have a wellness program in place. What can you do to get employees consistently engaged with high attendance and participation?
You might have created short-term solutions like one-off health assessments or surveys. Maybe you brought in consultants that gave you ideas for a good framework.
These efforts look good on paper (or PowerPoint slides), but they don’t always create meaningful change, and they don’t stick.
Corporate wellness programs benefit employees through health and self-care. They focus on long-term preventative care rather than scrambling to problems once they’ve started.
According to research, 84% of employers reported that corporate wellness programs led to higher productivity and performance among their staff.“If you’re employed by a government entity, like a state government, you may have a lot more protections under the First Amendment than you would if you were employed by a private employer. A private employer is not subject to the First Amendment at all,” said Whelan.
Although it’s not enshrined in the Bill of Rights, there are some legal limits when it comes to private companies disciplining employees for statements made on personal social media accounts. This crucial distinction applies to what the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) calls “concerted activity.”
Starting (or improving) corporate wellness programs
You only have to look at the data and recent trends to understand how workers feel. The media has coined several new terms to describe these concerning trends.
The impact of global events and health crises have impacted most people’s everyday life and overall well-being. Workers are experiencing more burnout and higher rates of depression.
We want to look at how to effectively build a holistic corporate wellness program that will excite and engage your employees.
HR professionals are responsible for meeting their employees where they’re at from a solutions-oriented and abundant mindset.
Discover how to design and effectively implement a healthy workplace with an effective corporate wellness program.