Globally organisations have never had to be challenged to rapidly develop solutions that help maintain productivity and employee well-being for an entirely remote workforce. These demands have led to a shift in priorities for the people profession, with a key focus now on retention, health and well-being, and employee engagement.
People profession in 2020 research shows. Working from home during the lockdown has highlighted the risks to maintaining health and well-being. Around 3 in 10 employees say using portable devices blurs boundaries between work and home life, making it difficult to switch off from work. While video conferencing platforms enable team collaboration, excessive use can lead to digital burnout, damaging motivation and productivity. Some people feel isolated due to a lack of face-to-face interaction, while others struggle with physical problems due to too much screen time or a lack of sufficient desk equipment at home.
Factors affecting well-being can be a combination of social and economic factors. Due to the cost of living and inflation of running your home CIPD found in a recent study in 2020 that the number of sick days recorded by employers has dropped, ‘presenteeism’, where employees feel the need to work when unwell, and ‘leaves’, where, for example, employees use their holiday allowance to work, are widespread and causes burnout and makes employees significantly sick, facing long-term sickness or unemployment. The findings highlight UK workers’ everyday pressures, many of whom feel they’re dealing with mounting stress. Over a third of respondents said that stress-related absence had increased over the past year, although sickness levels have been at an all-time low in over 20 years. Organisations need to look much more profound than sickness absence to understand what drives their employees’ behaviour, attendance, and well-being. The people profession plays a crucial role in this regard.
How Can We Support Employees
Flexible working practices are crucial to helping workers carve out time for their work and personal or caring responsibilities.
- Line managers are crucial in supporting their team members to find a balance, so they don’t feel pressured to be online and ‘visible’ 24/7.
- Developing higher levels of trust with your employees helps to build a working relationship and contributes towards creating a positive culture.
- Creating supportive leadership cultures where senior leaders lead by example
- Training people managers so they can confidently point employees in the right direction for support
- Using occupational health to address long-term absence, promote health and reduce sickness
- They provide a general environment where people feel comfortable and safe when discussing health issues.
Our team of Care Consultants can work with you to look at your organisation’s infrastructure and processes to see how you can better support your employees. The more you invest in your employees’ well-being, the more you create a better service and operate efficiently.
Your company and reputation will grow organically through recommendations due to employee and customer satisfaction feedback. Recruitment and retention will no longer be a pressure area.
