Workplace wellbeing primarily comprises of community wellbeing, physical wellbeing, financial wellbeing, social wellbeing and career wellbeing of employees (Rath & Harter, 2010). Therefore, employee wellbeing can be defined as a working life environment that promotes employee contentment, benefitting the organization and the employee. The senior leadership team must make sure that employees are satisfied, healthy, and safe in the workplace, as the well-being of workers directly impacts their productivity levels. If human resource wellness is not addressed, workplace-related issues such as strain, burnout, conflict, and bullying occur as an aftermath of stress. Hence, HR leaders should make the well-being of workers their top priority as it is used to predict primary indicators of a company’s performance, such as voluntary turnover, job performance, absenteeism, and productivity(Wijngaards, King & Burger, 2021).
Senior leaders should, therefore, implement workers’ wellness programs that will help address the physical fitness of employees and help manage their lifestyles. It is also essential for senior leaders to measure the well-being of employees to determine the success of wellness programs they implement. The senior leaders must assess program uptake to determine barriers that may be hindering employee program access (Hesketh & Cooper, 2019). Again, there should be open communication about the programs to ensure that employees are aware of their existence and purpose. Workplace well-being can be measured through physiological and behavioral measures, productivity rates, and question surveys.
Conservation of Resources Theory
The theory implies that employees need resources such as physical energy, cognitive attention, and time to complete tasks, and when these resources are replenished, they need breaks to foster well-being and prevent burnout and occupational stress. The theory also explains that losing resources is more stressful than gaining them; therefore, the importance of improving the well-being of employees is to lower voluntary turnover rates (Halbesleben, Neveu & Paustian-Underdahl, 2014). Further, it explains that individuals seek to build, protect, and conserve resources through building personal resources such as self-esteem, knowledge, and skills. Senior managers should, therefore, provide external support to employees to motivate them to be more productive.
Recommendations
Fostering a Work-Life Balance Culture
Employees report less interest in leaving their jobs, better job performance, and higher job satisfaction if senior managers in an organization advocate for a balance between work and personal life. In addition to working, employees might also be caregivers to their elderly parent or their children. Therefore, such employee needs a more supportive leadership team to overcome challenges as they try to balance their personal and work life. According to Kelly, Berkman, and Kubzansky (2021), research done in a nursing home indicated that workers who had supportive managers slept better and were less likely to have cardiovascular disease. Senior managers can ensure that there is a balance between work and personal life for their employees by increasing the stability of the work schedules and balancing their workload. This is because it becomes hard for employees to manage their work and personal responsibilities if their work schedules are unpredictable and erratic and the workload is overwhelming. Workers are likely to experience greater emotional distress and poorer sleep quality if their work schedule is erratic (Huppert, 2014). A stable work schedule is beneficial to the employees and the organization as it increases labor productivity and quality of life.
Implementing a Wellbeing Program
Wellness programs comprise practices and policies that senior leaders advocate for to enhance the well-being of workers. Senior managers who adequately implement wellness programs report an increase in productivity and a decrease in absenteeism(Taylor & Perkins, 2021).). There is also a reduction in stress, higher levels of employee engagement, and improved employee morale. Consequently, senior managers should tailor a wellness program that suits their workforce needs through employee participation and researching the current trends in workers’ well-being. An effective wellness program should involve recognizing employees’ outstanding job performance and milestones to foster motivation and morale. The program should also incorporate monthly wellness challenges to measure the progress of the employee’s well-being (Berry, Mirabito & Baun, 2020). Again, the program should also incorporate health practitioners so that employees can gain access to preventive health checkups. Lastly, the programs should initiate paid mental health leave days to ensure that employees have healthy mental status.
Barriers
Lack of Interest
Some employees may be resistant to enrolling and participating in the wellness program (Quirk, Cran & Carter, 2018). This might be because wellness programs mainly occur outside working hours. Other employees may enroll in the wellness program but lose interest.
Inadequate Resources
Developing wellness programs can be time-consuming and costly to companies, and hence, organizations may not have adequate resources. The organization may not allocate funds for more comprehensive wellness programs, which may lead to the failure of the programs.
Lack of Knowledge
Some employees may not prioritize their mental and physical well-being due to a lack of knowledge of the importance of mental and physical well-being (McLaurin, 2017. Therefore, they may not consider engaging in organizational wellness initiatives
Overcoming Barriers
Employees should be engaged in the development and implementation of wellness programs for them to be effective (Zula, 2014). Senior managers should also seek ideas and feedback from employees to tailor a program that resonates with the employees. Educating employees on the potential benefits of well-being practices and programs may also reduce resistance. Partnering with external wellness consultants to develop programs that reduce the burden on organizational resources can help solve resource issues.
Measuring Effectiveness
Retention Rates
Poor work-life balance is a major cause of employees quitting their jobs. Therefore, the turnover rate in an organization can help predict the success of practices that senior managers implement to improve employee well-being. An organization that offers stable work schedules is likely to retain its employees due to greater work-life balance.
Surveys
Senior managers can administer surveys with quantitative and qualitative questions to measure the success of wellness programs. Quantitative questions help correct feedback on specific aspects of the programs to help gauge their effectiveness (Guest, 1997). Qualitative feedback helps employees express their personal views about the effectiveness of the program.
Productivity Rates
Healthy employees are more motivated and engaged in the workplace and, therefore, are likely to be more productive (CIPD, 2022). If the productivity of employees does not improve or reduce, it implies that the well-being initiatives set in place are nonfunctional.
Conclusion
Implementing a wellness program and fostering a work-life balance culture can help senior leaders enhance the well-being of employees in the workplace. Employee well-being benefits organizations by increasing productivity and reducing turnover. However, there are barriers, such as inadequate resources and lack of knowledge and interest, that need to be overcome by senior leaders to ensure that initiatives that enhance well-being are successful.
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