Wellbeing at work is the modern buzzword in the HR jargon. Most global HR leaders about 70% of surveyed senior leaders in HR are prioritizing employee wellbeing and mental health to develop workplace resilience. As more and more companies embrace remote working, the line between work and life is blurred. Therefore, organizations need to enhance work and working lives to deliver organisational performance and employee wellness. Employee wellbeing transcends beyond physical well being to include other life aspects such as emotional wellbeing, financial wellbeing, social wellbeing, workplace wellbeing and societal wellbeing.
Empirical evidence shows that happy employees are 36% more motivated and 31% likely to achieve their goals compared to peers. Employee wellbeing portends personal and professional benefits, therefore, more corporates are willing to invest in employee wellbeing and allow for more flexible working environment.
Due to the importance of wellbeing at workplace, CIPD introduced a course unit in CIPD level 5 that explores the link between wellbeing and people management and organizational strategy. At the end of the unit the learners will be able to understand the relevance and benefits of employee wellbeing in an organization. Understand how wellbeing interplays with people management practices. Lastly, learn how to design and develop a wellbeing suited to an organization
See 5OS07 well-being at work assignment example
What’s Workplace Wellness?
According to the ILO, workplace wellbeing relates to all aspects of working life. It involves everything from the physical environment to how workers feel about their job and work organization.
How Do You Achieve a Healthy Workforce?
If your organization fosters a thriving environment, its workers experience less stress and perform better.
Creating a Healthy Workplace
First, HR managers should know wellbeing is a complex combination of physical, social, mental, and emotional health factors. They should craft policies that ensure employee happiness and satisfaction on all fronts.
Secondly, I recommend stewards to participate in continuous learning on corporate wellness. Enroll HR managers in certified programs offered by institutions such as Corporate Health & Wellness Association to keep the company at par with best practices.
What Shapes Modern Employee Wellbeing?
Workers become unhappy at their jobs due to varying problems including:
- Conflicts with their bosses or workmates.
- Personal stress due to poor work-life balance.
- Overwork, safety concerns, poor pay, and no promotion in sight.
- Boredom and chore monotony, bullying, discrimination or harassment.
- Ineffective communication on imminent changes and little employee involvement in policy formulation.
There are 3 universal factors affecting the wellbeing of workers: physical amenities, social-economic reasons, and mental health issues.
The Relevance of Physical Employee Wellbeing
Model workstations to reduce the risk of physical injuries, promote good posture, and encourage healthy movement throughout the workplace.
Office Ergonomics: How Comfortable are You?
Office ergonomics focuses on creating an optimal, comfortable, and safe workspace.
There are four ways in which ergonomics relate to employee productivity and mental well-being, namely:
1. Reducing anxiety and lowering stress levels.
Sample staying in an awkward posture for more than five minutes. Horrible, isn’t it? Ergonomically designed office furniture and appliances promote better posture. It sharply reduces body strain and calms down the office user, making them more efficient in their tasks.
2. Good ergonomics brightens employee moods and boosts their energy levels.
Nothing drains an employee’s energy faster than working in an uncomfortable position. Scout for workstations that promote movement, allowing the occupants to seamlessly switch between sitting and standing.
3. Prime office layouts enhance focus and productivity!
The physical discomfort arising from poor ergonomics keeps on distracting employees, ultimately affecting their ability to focus on core duties. Pay for a design that considers comfort, safety, and the productivity of the workforce.
4. Finally, optimal ergonomics reduces absenteeism and the average employee healthcare expenses.
As an employer, investing in ergonomics leads to significant reduction in absenteeism from work-related injuries and ailments. Thus, you’ll noticeably cut down on the company employee’s healthcare costs.
Key Takeaway
Incorporating ergonomics into corporate wellness programs is essential. By providing ergonomically designed workstations and equipment, organizations create a safe and comfortable environment that promotes good posture, healthy movement, and reduces the risk of physical injury. This leads to increased productivity, better engagement, and higher job satisfaction.
Emerging Occupational Health and Safety Concerns
Technology has redefined how businesses organize the workplace, but the following employees are perpetually at a greater risk.
- Night Shift Workers
Apart from transport accidents and work-related mishaps, nightly shifts are also notorious for family problems. They’re a primary cause for many divorces.
- Dangerous Professions
Some jobs are naturally dangerous. In Australia, for example, any occupation in the transport, forestry, mining, fishing, agriculture and construction industries is labeled ‘dangerous.’
- Hazardous Work Practices
A workplace that doesn’t enforce safety regulations is dangerous, no matter the industry. Common hazardous practices include not wearing PPE, ignoring operation manuals, or failing to use cautionary handling techniques.
What Causes Workplace Injuries?
Most workplace injuries are a result of:
i) Failure to use the right equipment, tool overuse / misuse, or poor handling of machines.
ii) Vehicular and machine accidents.
iii) Falls, electrocution, and drowning.
iv) Accidents involving dangerous goods or hazardous substances e.g a reactive liquid splash.
v) Violence-at-work injuries.
A Sound Examination of an Employee’s Mental Wellness
Stress management strategies are a must-have in any organization. An environment pregnant with a stressed team is a seething volcano of chaos, something HR dreads.
If you notice any of the following indicators, engage mental health support mechanisms immediately.
Unlawful Discrimination
Discrimination at work lowers the stress resilience of affected employees. The management or a part of the workforce may seclude colleagues based on such grounds as:
- Race, color of their skin, nationality, or ethnic origin.
- Sexual orientation and the person’s gender.
- Age, disability, marital status, and religious affiliation.
- Their trade union activity.
Workplace discrimination comes to the surface when:
a) Recruiting and selecting staff, or when offering employment benefits.
b) Executing staff transfers, retrenchment, promotions, and dismissal.
c) Deciding who’ll receive training.
As a manager, always support open and objective conversations about discrimination at work.
Strive to Create a Work-Life Equilibrium
Post-COVID, many of us now harbor experiences with in-office and the hybrid / fully-remote work models. There’s no doubt companies still insist on physical attendance.
However, numerous surveys of employees strongly suggest people find the most balanced life when working remotely. Of course with a few disadvantages, especially to the employer.
How to Overcome Mental Wellness Challenges
Make sure HR managers model positive wellbeing behaviors. Where needed, they should use their voice to strongly challenge stigma.
By regularly meeting all employees, management has a chance to catch any problems before it grows to unmanageable levels.
Training and campaigns increase mental health awareness. A company’s Mental Health Champion can be charged with listening to and guiding staff on available support programs.
Elements of Social Workplace Health
Positive team synergy yields a vibrant work environment. Everyone understands their roles, feels valued, and genuinely believes they’re responsible for a collective achievement.
Such teams capitalize on each other’s expertise. Whenever there’s a collaborative culture in the workforce, all the teammates become happier and healthier.
The Role of Communication in Work Relationships
Modern communication makes information distribution at scale easier. Nowadays, employees can access digitized internal memos from anywhere or participate in online conferences. There’s fewer misunderstandings and better productivity.
However, credible research findings indicate digital communication erodes social connectedness. It seems seeking help from colleagues and guidance from managers is the good old way to job satisfaction!
Six Notable Components of a Healthy Employee
- A happy, intimate relationship with a partner and a network of close friends at work.
- An enjoyable and fulfilling career that makes enough money.
- Regular exercise, observing a nutritional diet, getting enough sleep, and a healthy self esteem.
- Unhindered spiritual or religious beliefs, engaging in fun hobbies, and the pursuit of leisure.
- An optimistic outlook with realistic and achievable goals, thus creating a sense of purpose in the workplace.
- Living in a fair and democratic society, and their ability to adapt to change
Major Benefits of Prioritizing Employee Wellbeing
A company stands to gain the following if the workforce is healthy:
Increased Output Ratios
Productivity measurement methods show a corresponding increase in efficiency when employees’ wellbeing is thriving.
Better Employee Engagement and Satisfaction
Methods such as employee net promoter score (eNPS), absenteeism rate, employee turnover rate, Glassdoor, and employee satisfaction index (ESI) indicate the employees’ willingness to stay at their current workplace.
Reduced Absenteeism and Turnover
A healthy and happy workforce would rather be at work than anywhere else. They’re also more likely to stay with the employer throughout their working life.
Strategies for Improving Workplace Wellbeing
- Conduct employee satisfaction surveys.
- Encourage work-life and workload-balance through flexible work arrangements.
- Foster career development and training.
- Offer Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs).
- Prioritize employee mental health via managerial training and support.
- Zero tolerance policy to discrimination and a deliberate investment in diversity, equity, and inclusion.
- Carve out time for employees to focus on a collaborative company culture.
Overcoming Workplace Health Challenges
Before HR managers narrow down on a strategy, it’s wise to analyze the underlying causes of ill health. Workplace wellness comprises eight co-dependent domains: intellectual, emotional, occupational, financial, social, spiritual, physical, and environmental health factors.
Sustainable initiatives immensely contribute to a healthier work environment as we’ve seen in the article.
Conclusion
People professionals play a key role in designing, developing and ensuring smooth implementation of wellbeing policies, programs and practices in organizations. Passing 5OS07 assignment is a requisite to demonstrate that as a people professional you can drive wellbeing agenda.
Are you struggling to effectively answer CIPD 5OS07 wellbeing at work assignments? CIPD Assignment Help Desk in UAE provides students with the best CIPD assessment writing service in units for people practice specialization such as wellbeing at work, diversity and inclusion among others.
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