Mental Health and Wellbeing for Staff

With the annual cost of mental health to employers being as much as £42 billion a year, workplace mental health and wellbeing is an area that employers are tackling head-on. Businesses now recognise the importance of looking after their best asset, their staff. 

Improving the mental health and wellbeing for staff is not about providing unnecessary extras. Although employees may enjoy them, it is more important to transform the culture and support mental health and emotional wellbeing. So what are the many benefits that come from investing in wellbeing for staff? Here are just a few:

•  Promotes increases in productivity
•  Employees will become more motivated and engaged.
•  Lower staff turnover.
•  Reduced rates of absence
•  The company will develop an increased reputation.
• Many people prefer to support companies that treat their employees well.

Therefore, wellbeing programs for employees are worthwhile, despite any initial costs. They prevent additional charges in other areas of the business and save time from training new employees. In fact looking after the wellbeing of your staff means you could save as much as: 

• £1481 in the Private sector
• £1878 within the Public sector

How to Improve Wellbeing for Staff

Below are some ways you can look to improve your wellbeing of staff:

Celebrate Mental Health Days

Mental health can be a very sensitive subject. However, mental health is not a topic to be avoided. Furthermore, promoting wellbeing for staff encourages open communication in the workplace. Most importantly, one in four people will deal with a mental health problem at some point in their lives. Therefore, it is a common issue that many employers will face also. In other words, when employees feel supported, they are more likely to speak up about issues they have. As a result, they are more likely to deal with the problem before it grows.

One way to celebrate mental health days and promote wellbeing for staff is to hold team events. As a result, staff can form relationships with each other. Therefore, they will enjoy going to work more as they feel happy to see their workmates. In fact, having good relationships at work means that staff can support each other. As a result, they will be more likely to talk about their mental health at work and ask for help when they need it.

Have a Designated Mental Health 1st Aid Champion

Having a designated Mental Health 1st Aid Champion is a great way to promote wellbeing for staff. A Mental Health 1st Aid Champion is someone who has taken training to support mental health in the workplace. In addition, they will be the first point of contact for those who are struggling with their mental health.

 Promote Growth

Personal and professional growth is highly demanded in the business world and therefore promotes wellbeing for staff. For employees to feel truly empowered and motivated, they need to grow. The best way to encourage growth is for employees to work towards a promotion. However, if this can’t be done, there are plenty of other ways employees can grow.

Employees may lack motivation if they are in the same job for a long time. Therefore, businesses should encourage them to gain some experience across other areas of the organisation. This will increase their skills allow more variety. Alternatively, an employer could offer additional training for employees. As a result, their confidence levels will increase, and they will be better able to fulfil their job requirements.

Encourage Self Care

A fantastic way to promote good wellbeing for staff is to encourage self-care. Mental health is closely linked to physical health. Therefore, an employer should aim to provide services that encourage employees to maintain good physical health. For example:

· A cycle to work scheme

· Providing healthy snacks in the staff room

· Providing a free gym pass

However, there are also other services that employees can offer to encourage self-care, such as:

· Offering yoga sessions

· Complimentary massage therapies

· Encouraging employees to have regular short breaks to stretch their legs

· Providing workplace counselling services

Offering these benefits to staff will lead to better wellbeing for staff and lower stress levels at work. Therefore, employers will be happier and more motivated, leading to higher quality work. Obviously, it can help to reduce the chances of staff experiencing burnout from too much stress at work. Therefore, they will be less likely to take sick days due to their mental health and wellbeing.

Be Flexible

With the changing times, it is more and more common for people to work from home. If an employee feels that working from home suits them best, it would be good to allow this where possible. Many would rather work from home, as they can focus better and therefore get more work done. Alternatively, an employer may offer flexible working hours. As a result, wellbeing for staff is prioritised, as employees can have a more balanced life as they can arrange work around other commitments.

Ask for Feedback

The best way to learn about the standard of wellbeing for staff is to ask them. Perhaps create a survey to give out to each employee to find out more about their mental health. For example, some questions to include could be:

· How has your mental health changed since starting with this company?

· What mood do you feel most in the workplace?

· What do you struggle with most at work?

· How supported do you feel at work?

· Do you believe well being programs for employees would make you feel happier at work?

· Are there enough well being programs for employees being offered?

· Do you feel as if you are a valued team member?

At the end of the survey, it would help if there was a suggestion box where employees could suggest improvements for better wellbeing for staff at work. Doing so will improve the wellbeing for staff as employees feel valued and have greater job satisfaction.