As the UK workforce begin to return to offices and pre-COVID workplaces, employers, now more than ever, are facing an array of challenges. The pandemic has naturally made employees reassess and refocus on what is important to them across all aspects of their life, of which work is a large component. Recent research has reported that over 40% of the global workforce is considering leaving their current employer this year. As such, businesses are now having to think more about attracting and retaining staff in the bid to maintain or become an employer of choice.

It goes without saying that employee wellbeing has risen on all corporate agendas over the last 18 months with employers now thinking outside of the box when it comes to employee wellbeing and employee benefits. Businesses are looking at how they can incorporate preventative measures into their offering that complement benefits such as OnDemand GP and health insurances, and place emphasis on things like tackling and preventing stress, exercise, sleep, healthy food etc – all things that have an impact on a person’s overall health and wellbeing.

5 key reasons why ignoring wellbeing is a core business risk

1. Attract excellent staff

Post-COVID-19, employees increasingly expect wellbeing support to form part of their benefits offering and an organisation that shows they value employees as people, not just production units, stand out in a crowded job market.

2. Improve your employee retention

With the cost of replacing an employee estimated at anything from a fifth to a third of their salary, it’s no wonder that employers want to keep staff in post and performing at their best for as long as possible.[1]

3. Improve business productivity

Driving a high-performance culture without support for mental and physical health puts employees at risk of burnout. But with the right wellbeing support, your people feel empowered to perform at their best, day after day.

4. Boost employee engagement

Motivated and committed employees go the extra mile, and the link between engagement and business success is recognised industry wide.

5. Reduce presenteeism and absenteeism

Absenteeism caused by low engagement or poor health costs UK businesses millions in lost productivity. Even when employees are at work, they may not be delivering return on investment. Presenteeism – where employees are at work but aren’t functioning at 100% because of health or other issues – is a widespread problem.

What makes a successful wellbeing strategy?

A successful wellbeing strategy needs to embrace all aspects of wellbeing and resonate to the entire workforce, considering the individualities of your workforce, hence what one person deems valuable, the other may not. Reach out to employees, gauge what they are looking for support on. It could be younger generations are looking for help or advice on how to get onto the property ladder, whereas employees further on in their career may want some guidance on pension planning.

Like any benefits offering, they are only successful if employees know about them. Think about how you are communicating with your staff, are they engaging with their benefits? Do you get MI to see what’s working and what’s not? Getting measurable outcomes not only helps you identify employee interaction but will help when it comes to looking at the ROI of your strategy.

The right wellbeing provisions build a resilient workforce, attract and retain talent and importantly, help to look after the health of your staff.

Talk to us about how to support your workforce by calling 01908 605000, email hellohapi@personalgroup.com or visit our Hapi benefits page for more information.

[1] CIPD, Employee turnover and retention (21 Jul 2020). Accessed at https://www.cipd.co.uk/knowledge/strategy/resourcing/turnover-retention-factsheet