If corporate wellness isn’t a priority at your company, you may be considering leaving your job. However, these days a job is like gold dust, so how do you look after your wellbeing in the job you already have?
1. Institute a Wellness Programme: According to corporate wellness expert Ryan Rivera, ‘Developing a wellness programme for the employees is important in keeping the workplace and workforce healthy. In Japan, companies are forcing their employees to keep fit or risk paying hefty fines. The move encourages companies to put in place wellness programmes that will see to it that employees are taking care of their midsections. Companies that are bent on putting a wellness programme should start with the kind of food being served in the cafeteria. Encourage employees to become more health conscious by raising awareness.’
2. Build Wellness Facilities: ‘There is no law that mandates companies to build wellness facilities,’ Rivera admits. ‘But, it will surely give your company better discounts when shopping for health insurance providers. Some health insurance providers are keen to give better rates to companies to cover employees when there is a solid programme for wellness. A company can start a great wellness programme through facilities such as a gym and a stress-relief room. A gym with modest equipment can immensely help employees release stress at the end of the day.’
3. Urge Employees to Get Involved with Sports: Rivera points out, ‘Leading companies that are concerned about workplace stress usually have a sports team that competes on weekends. In some localities, Sunday leagues comprise of people who wants to have a semblance of competition without the need of resigning from their regular jobs. Encourage employees to form sports teams that would carry the name of the company and compete with other companies in your area. It will not only help relieve stress but it is also a good way to foster camaraderie and company spirit not to mention teamwork.’
4. Provide Plenty of Growth Opportunities: ‘Inspiration is what drives people to excellence,’ Rivera asserts. ‘If you allow growth from within chances are people would stay driven to climb the corporate ladder. At the same time, it is important to provide lots of trainings to improve employee value and productivity.’
5. De-Clutter the Workplace: ‘A cluttered and disorganised workplace is a leading stress generator,’ Rivera explains. ‘Productivity is often impacted when things on top of the desk are left cluttered. When your desk is disorganized you waste precious time looking for articles and things that could have been easily located if things have been organized. Just imagine the amount of stress an employee is getting when the workplace is cluttered. Try to communicate with employees regarding best practices on organizing the workspace in order to effectively de-clutter things for better productivity.’
6. Improve Workplace Communications: Rivera comments, ‘Workplace communications will improve dramatically when you are able to define the roles of each employee in the organization. There should be a clear delineation of job descriptions. At the same time, encourage employees to have a say in the decisions that impact their jobs. Providing an open-door policy is one way to cushion the uncertainties of job security which is prevalent in these ever volatile times.’
7. Cultivate a Stress-Free Working Culture: ‘A stress-free working culture is one way to develop a less toxic working environment,’ Rivera details. ‘Management can start recognizing employees for their exemplary work and going easy with employees that screw up. A merit-based culture that is consistent and fair is the way to encourage people to perform better through inspiration. Leaders should be getting lots of training on how to handle their subordinates well and how to minimize stressors that can drive attrition to stratospheric levels.’
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