You could be forgiven for thinking, as a business owner, that an employee wellness program is an expensive extra that you could well do without, but you’d be wrong. Below are some very compelling reasons why every company should embrace the wellness program…
Increased productivity
According to a study in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, which everyone with a masters degree in occupational therapy will tell you is the real deal, corporate wellness programs can boost productivity levels amongst staff and save businesses a bunch of money in the process.
This makes sense when you think about it because employees who are not feeling well are less likely to work at their optimum levels than those who are in good health. That’s why you should set up an employee wellness program that focuses on promoting good health via diet, exercise, and regular physical exams, for example.
Reduce sick days
Sick days cost businesses millions of dollars each year, so anything you can do to reduce sick days from your own employees is going to be of huge benefit to your business. It’s really obvious, but promoting wellness amongst your employees is going to do just that. Whether you offer free meditation classes to reduce stress and depression or have an occupational therapist come in and teach your employees how to stretch so they can avoid injuries, anything you can do to increase wellness will reduce sick days, and again save you money, as well as helping to keep your company’s productivity levels high.
Boost employee engagement
Companies that offer employee wellness programs are more likely to boost employee engagement because employees will see that the company really cares about them above and beyond what they can do for them.
The best way to increase employee engagement is to come up with employee wellness programs that encourage group activities such as employee hiking meetings, biggest loser challenges, softball teams, and things of that nature.
Spending time together outside of work, having fun, and getting healthy will bond your team together better than any silly team bonding exercise ever could, so it really can be beneficial.
Hire the best people
As a business, you will probably be aware that your employees are one of, if not the, best asset you have, which means you need to attract the top talent if you want to beat the competition. One of the things that can help you with this is offering more benefits and perks than other companies, and…you’ve guessed it, a decent employee wellness program is an excellent example of that.
These days, employees are very focused on their physical and mental health, as they should be. They don’t want to work themselves to the bone for a company that doesn’t care about them, and they do want to take better care of themselves, so it stands to reason that an employee wellness program will help you attract the best employees and build a better business as a result. Just make sure that you publicize it heavily as a perk whenever you’re hiring for a new position.
Boost employee retention
Of course, once you’ve recruited those great employees who will bring fresh new ideas and help you hook lots of juicy new clients, you’re going to want to keep them working for you for as long as possible. Again, this is an area where corporate wellness programs can help you. How? Because if you support your employees in every aspect of their work including their health, and if you actively try to help them achieve their goals, they will stay loyal to your business, be happier in their work, and thus less likely to leave and look for employment elsewhere anytime soon. It really is that simple.
Boost staff morale
Happy staff work more productively than unhappy staff. They also present a better corporate image and stick around longer. The right employee wellbeing measures, such as free healthy food, desk yoga classes, and fun competitions, can boost staff morale like nothing else, so you can keep employees happy, enjoy a pleasant working atmosphere and ultimately improve the efficiency of your business – there are literally no downsides to promoting employee wellness in the workplace!
As you can see, skipping out on creating an employee wellness program for your business is likely to be a big mistake. By creating a program, you can boost your bottom line, improve productivity and find and retain the best employees, so it really is a no-brainer.
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