The wellbeing of your employees is directly linked to productivity and how well your business performs. A happy workforce will mean that it’s easier to recruit staff, you can retain them longer, plus they will perform well while they are in your employment.
If you want to increase the wellbeing of your workforce, it’s important that measures are implemented from the top down and each line manager should be trained in the key aspects which can make the biggest differences. Let’s look at eight of these in turn.
1. Start Right
The induction stage is a crucial aspect of workplace performance. Get this right and you will have staff members who settle quickly, who are up to speed in their job much faster and who are invested more heavily in the future success of the business.
2. Be Clear On the Job Specification
Even before you hire an employee, you need to define clearly the job specification. If this is in place before recruitment you are more likely to hire the right person, plus the employee will recognise that not only are they a great fit for the role but that their skills are being well used.
3. Offer Training
Offering in-house and external training is a great way to improve retention and gain better-skilled staff. For the employee it’s a signal you are happy to invest in them and that you value them as part of the workforce.
4. Play Fair With Remuneration
Naturally, everyone wants to be as well paid for a job as they can. However, this doesn’t mean people are always seeking the next increase. As long as they feel their salary is fair in terms of the market rate and the business as a whole they will be satisfied.
5. Don’t Shy Away From Appraisals
Both employees and their managers can dread appraisal time, but approached constructively it’s an opportunity for both sides to communicate about what’s being done well and what leaves room for improvement. Ensuring staff members feel heard is an important element in employee wellbeing.
6. Implement Policies and Procedures
Staff members want to know they will be treated fairly and they also expect the same for their colleagues. The atmosphere in a workplace which tolerates bullying, whether from colleagues, managers or even clients, will quickly decline. While it’s not possible to guard against this eventuality, you should ensure there are robust policies in place to deal swiftly with any issues which arise.
7. Create a Welcoming Environment
The workplace environment is important to employee wellbeing as you want your staff members to be keen to come to work. In part, this is down to the fabric of the building and the facilities you provide. However, a big factor will be a lively and friendly atmosphere and you should do all you can to foster this, offering benefits in terms of team dinners and staff parties.
8. Pay Attention to Your Employees’ Health
Many employees will go through difficult issues relating to their home life whilst they are in your employment. Ensure you have strategies in place for dealing with this, including a designated member of staff they can speak to or a confidential telephone counselling service they can turn to, these are often included in Private Medical Insurance cover for no additional cost.
You can also take proactive steps to encourage your staff to improve their physical health. Offer subsidised gym memberships; make healthy snacks and chilled water readily available, and provide information to help people quit smoking through alternatives such as e-cigarettes or nicotine patches. With smoking being a hindrance to employee productivity, e-cigarettes are more socially acceptable and be a great method for quitting smoking for good.
Some of these steps will take time and financial investment to implement. However, you will quickly see a return in terms of a happier and more productive workforce.
