Retaining Employees Through Wellbeing Schemes

“Employers have a vested interest in the mental and physical health of their employees for multiple reasons. Firstly, investing in employee wellbeing not only makes your staff happier, healthier and safer, but it will also make them perform well and motivated to do their best at work. Finally, investing in your staff through a wellbeing scheme can help attract new talent, but more importantly – retain that new talent.
The modern workplace has transformed drastically in just a few short years. Businesses who feel that employees should enjoy the workplace because this is where we spend so much of our time are no longer out of the norm. Many businesses are looking for ways to improve employee wellbeing for many reasons, including those we’ve already mentioned.  However, many employers are looking deeper and finding ways to both improve their employees’ happiness and health through wellbeing schemes, all the while helping them to retain their talent. We’re sharing a few ideas for how business can get started and what they might want to include in their wellbeing scheme.

Personal wellbeing
Investing in employees’ personal wellbeing not only benefits their health, but it also can help them stay happy at work because they know their boss is prepared to invest in them. There are many ways businesses can offer to help improve employee wellbeing, and some of the more common ways include:
-Offering medical cover -Paying for gym memberships -Implementing cycle to work schemes -Flexible working accommodation
These are just a few of the ways business try and contribute to the overall quality of employees’ personal lives. However, there’s nothing ground-breaking about these offerings. Benefits are certainly an important part of a wellbeing program, but to really affect the morale of a company, wellbeing must be written into all policies and approaches within the business. This means that at the core of a company’s culture, the mood and health of the employees must be factored in. Whether this means multiple health activities and events like yoga, breathing exercises, or personal skill-building workshops.
Creative benefits are another area that can help to not only boost employee wellbeing but also help to retain talent. Many businesses are finding unique and even quirky ways to reward employees. In recent years, we’re seeing many examples of this, including:
-Unlimited holiday -Mental health days -Extended leave for travel and personal growth
Offering unique and progressive perks for employees’ personal wellbeing is a great way to not only make your company stand out, but will go a long way in retaining happy staff.
Workplace specific wellbeing
While it’s valuable to invest in the personal wellbeing, it’s equally important to invest in their workplace and the way they interact with and enjoy it. A recent article found that most employees find their workplace to be unpleasant. It’s vital that workers have a clean, safe environment with proper amenities such as break area, kitchen and toilets. These all go without saying, but it’s also extremely important that employees feel motivated in their workspace.
This goes beyond having an organised workspace that is well lit with quality furniture and a pleasant décor scheme. That’s all important – but investing in the workplace for the sake of employees is so much more than this. Employees should feel heard, inspired, valued, that they are part of a team and that their job is somewhere they want to be.
To improve wellbeing within the workplace, for years employers have been offering: -Ergonomic furniture -Opportunities for development -Teambuilding activities -Morale improving activities, games, challenges etc -Performance incentives
These all help employees enjoy their workplace, feel like they are part of something and that they have a goal to work towards. But to really push the envelope, employers can implement more progressive wellbeing offerings within the office. A few examples of how businesses could do this are:
-Free, healthy snacks in the break room or kitchen -Continual conversations about progression and general open conversations -Designated napping areas or pods -Mentorships
It goes without saying that companies who invest in their employees enjoy a better and more productive environment. By making the effort to enhance the life of your employees, you can reap the benefits of a hardworking, happy staff who wants to stay where they are.”