Most of the time, employee wellness is considered a nice-to-have thing instead of a must-have — something you only worry about after having all the other ducks in a row.
However, setting aside employee wellness initiatives until you are “ready” or “big enough” will only hurt your organization and your staff’s productivity. This is because employee wellness and performance go hand in hand.
Why is Employee Health and Wellness Important?
A healthy work environment and culture drives results by creating an engaged workforce. Engaged teams often outperform competitors in categories such as employee retention, productivity and profit.
According to a Harvard Business Review, employers who on average invested in health and wellness initiatives saved $6 for every dollar spent in healthcare. The Rand Corporation estimated that a business’ ROI for every dollar invested in wellness was $1.5, while the disease management ROI was $3.8 for each invested dollar.
What are the Best Workplace Health and Wellness Ideas?
Although there are endless wellness ideas for employees, only a few are functional. An excellent wellness idea is not only one that has proven to work, but also one that your team is ready to participate in. Remember that a well-intentioned health and wellness idea with zero participation is a waste of time and your company’s money.
Involving your employees in something as simple as choosing the best ergonomic chair or standing desk for each will go a long way in making your workers feel like part of the organization, improve their health, and enhance productivity.
Below are top health and wellness ideas at the workplace that will make your team members excited and develop a more engaged team.
Top 8 Health and Wellness Ideas in the Workplace
Not all wellness initiatives are equally effective. Read on to discover 2019’s best workplace health and wellness ideas with the highest ROI.
Provide Healthy Office Snacks
The snacking culture is increasingly gaining popularity. Based on recent data, 91% of people snack multiple times daily. Actually, snacking in the U.S. accounts for around half of all eating.
Unfortunately, many organizations offer traditional low-quality soda, candy, and other snacks loaded with chemicals, sugar, and saturated fat. Not only do these snacks derail productivity by crashing energy, but also do they impact the worker’s health in the long run.
Since snacking is almost inevitable at the workplace, get healthier snacking alternatives that both enhance the worker’s health, and keep their energies high throughout the day.
Get Your Employees on Their Feet
Ever tried working in a height adjustable desk standing desk?
A report by the University of Cambridge shows that being sedentary is just as risky as being obese. The school studied European males and deduced that lack of exercise causes as many deaths as obesity. Another study found that detrimental effects of prolonged sedentary lifestyles carry on, even with intermittent exercise periods.
The best way to get your employees on their feet is by introducing adjustable height desks, also known as standing desks. Standup desks allow workers to avoid unhealthy sitting, enhances productivity, and helps your employees get in good shape. Autonomous has an array of on-the-go standing desks, ergonomic office chairs and other furniture at great prices.
Practice Gratitude
Wellness is not just about the physical well-being, but also your team’s mental health. Being grateful has been found to have many benefits like easing depression, curbing appetite and enhancing nighttime sleep. You can try this in your organization by creating a shared document where team members record things they are grateful for every day. Challenge the team to do this for three weeks, and at the end of it, better moods and productivity will be realized.
De-stress Zones
Each office should have a safe area where workers can distress, cry, or vent after a rough day. Create such a place in your property where the staff can get stress out of their system without being embarrassed or losing it in the presence of their peers.
Sponsor Guided Meditation
Stress is a silent killer in many offices. Harvard and Stanford Universities’ researchers examined decades of survey and realized that a stressful job might reduce one’s life expectancy.
The good news is, meditation and mindfulness techniques have been proven to reduce stress. With this, sponsoring meditation could be the best bet for restoring happiness in the office.
Introduce Ergonomic Work Stations
As mentioned earlier, a standing desk will enhance worker productivity and health. But there is more to that. An ergonomic work station will include a comfortable back-supporting ergonomic office chair, de-cluttered desks, natural lighting, an ergonomic keyboard, an ergonomic mouse, and an ergonomic monitor.
Onsite Wellness Services
Acupuncture, chair massages, Yoga instruction and more are valuable wellness services you can get at an affordable cost for your workforce. Reserve a special area for workers to sign up for sessions at a lower cost.
Flexible Work Schedules
This is a no-cost benefit that gives workers more work-to-life balance, especially those raising kids or caring for others. Giving your employees flexible working schedules that allow them to arrive at the office at their chosen time or work from home when possible could go a long way in increasing employee loyalty and productivity.
Start Now!
Don’t wait to live healthily. Take measures now, and within no time, you’ll realize greater employee loyalty, commitment to work, better energies, increased productivity and enhanced health. Start by getting every office worker a functional standing desk and ergonomic chair from Autonomous.
Nancy is a journalist with passion for technology. In her 12 years of experience, she has crafted some of the most detailed pieces that describe the importance, benefits, and progress happening in the technology world.
