Employees are essentially your most valuable asset. You can measure this value in terms of output and performance. Therefore, if you were to improve the general performance of your employees and keep them motivated to work for your organization, you will need to ensure that their needs are well taken care of. Employee wellness is known to increase productivity, performance, and even teamwork. With healthy employees, workplace accidents and sick leaves are cut in half. Essentially, taking care of your employees’ wellness saves you money. The following are ways in which you can keep your staff healthy.
1. Focus on Prevention
Most of the accidents that occur can be prevented. So are outbreaks and other occurrences. Now, as the saying goes, prevention is better than cure. You can protect your staff and keep them healthy by preventing accidents from happening. In addition, you can create an environment where probable risks are evaluated and solutions found before occurrence. Want to know how you can do this? The following are a few tips to get you started.
- Get a doctor to regularly visit the workplace and evaluate the health issues facing your employees.
- Offer vaccinations or treatments for diseases that might bring about a workplace outbreak.
- Give your employees health incentives such as health insurance.
- Implement regular evaluation of plant machinery and workplace environment to prevent accidents.
- Get your staff protective gear such as helmets, gloves, and glasses.
- Advocate regular health checks to promote earlier detection of illnesses and prompt treatment.
2. Encourage Fitness Exercises
Having a long day at work and going home to your family tired can prevent you from engaging in fitness programs. This can lead to diabetes, heart problems, and a general lack of fitness in the long run. Assuming this happens to your employees, you are responsible for ensuring that every employee is healthy and fit. Normally, you can give back to them by providing them with incentives such as the following tips.
- Provide them with health trackers.
- Encourage walk meetings where everybody gets to walk for a block or two.
- Create a sports team for the organization.
- Add bicycles racks to your organization’s car park.
- Encourage the employees to take the stairs.
- Provide a company gym or working out a deal with a local gym that will offer a discount.
- Install shower areas where employees can refresh after riding, walking, or running to work.
3. Promote Better Mental Health Among Your Employees
According to recent statistics, ignoring employee mental health can cost an economy lots of billions of dollars. Therefore, to avoid this loss and probable talent loss, an organization should take on the responsibility of caring for the employees’ mental health. To achieve better mental health for employees, consider the following tips.
- Create a health plan for all the employees.
- Have your employees seek mental help through incentives.
- Promote positive communication and resolution of disputes.
- Train your managers on mental health issues.
- Regularly evaluate your employees for signs of breakdown.
- Have in-house counselors.
- Promote anonymous mental therapy sessions.
- Engage the employees through anonymous polling.
- Consider running a therapy group for the organization.
- Promote strict ethical behavior and implement strategies that prevent bullying and harassment at work.
- Help the affected employees walk through the whole journey.
In a Nutshell
Better employee health translates to increased motivation and better performance. If it is not fitness, it will be mental problems or accidents. Other problems such as drinking and low self-esteem might follow. Your employee is your responsibility. With a healthy employee, you can also count on better productivity.