What Is Employee Wellbeing? The Secret To A Great Workplace

Employee wellbeing

In today's workplace climate, 73% of employees would consider leaving their jobs for the right offer. 

How can businesses combat this high number? Ensuring employee wellbeing is one way to go about it. 

Employee wellbeing encompasses many different areas of their experience. This includes everything from having a positive culture to promoting work-life balance

Keep reading to learn how organizations can measure and improve this essential element.


What is Wellbeing at Work?

Wellbeing at work can look like many different things, as we just alluded to. 

But most importantly, staff wellbeing affects the mental, physical, and emotional health of a company's employees. 

Employees who feel valued and supported will automatically feel happier than those who don't in a company, it's just that simple. Thankfully, there are countless ways businesses can promote this. 

For example, a business that prioritizes job satisfaction, room for growth, smooth communication across teams, and supportive relationships with managers/coworkers. 

When businesses are able to incorporate these qualities, improving employee wellbeing will become all that much easier. Plus it leads to a more productive team.

It's a win-win! 


The Aspects of Employee Wellbeing

As we mentioned, the key aspects of employee wellbeing involve businesses being supportive of their mental, physical, and emotional health. 

This looks like employees having access to...

  • Mental wellness initiatives
  • Safe workspaces
  • Access to healthcare
  • Supportive and inclusive culture
  • Creating positive employee relationships

When businesses put these factors together, they will see staff wellbeing levels begin to rise. 

That said, a company won't see results overnight when enacting these strategies. The key here is to enact lasting change within the business. 

Once businesses have a set plan with how they want to use these strategies, they need to ensure they keep up with them - doing so will gain the trust of employees over time. 


How Much Responsibility Do Employers Have?

The short answer? A lot. 

As employers, they need to ensure employees feel secure on a regular basis. Just like we mentioned in our last section, making changes but then not following through can damage the employee/employer relationship. 

In other words, employee wellbeing levels will tank. 

It's up to employers to maintain a supportive, growth-centered work environment. A good way to go about doing this is creating a continuously developing employee wellness plan. 

Additionally, employers should recognize this key role in their workplace. Keeping an ongoing line of communication open with their employees will also help with this. 


How Can You Measure Wellbeing?

There are multiple ways employers can measure employee wellbeing levels. The tools they ultimately choose to use depend on the specific employee needs. 

Surveys For Data Collection

Running employee surveys is key when it comes to measuring staff wellbeing levels. 

Running these surveys will reveal data about how employees interact with your business and how that affects them. These surveys are often conducted online and will be sent via email to the employee. 

From there, the employee will answer the survey questions, revealing key insights. 

It's ideal to use a third-party for employee surveys. This will ensure quality survey design and questions.

Doing this also means employees will be open and honest, as their responses will not be traced back to them! 


Using Indexes to Analyze Data

Measuring the frequency of positive experiences, the Positive Emotions Index will help businesses determine the overall wellbeing of their employees. 

It's important for businesses to understand the positive impact they have on employees so they can have a general ideal of wellbeing levels. 

On the flip side, the Negative Emotions Index measures the level of  negative emotions like stress, sadness, and so on within the workplace. This data is essential, as it will tell employers how they can improve certain areas.

Lastly, the Life Evaluation Index measures the satisfaction levels of life circumstances as they relate to the workplace. 

This includes:

  • Personal fulfillment 
  • Financial stability 
  • Social connections

When combining these indexes together, employers have the chance to truly understand their employees.


How Wellbeing Affects Employees

By now, it's clear how the wellbeing of employees is directly impacted by a number of different factors. Below, we'll discuss some of the biggest ways staff wellbeing influences the workplace.  

Employee Retention

Of course, happy employees will want to stay at their company! 

These increased employee retention rates have a direct correlation to wellbeing efforts made by their employers. This has a direct impact on employee loyalty rates as well. 

What's more, employees who are being treated well by their employers are naturally more productive. They want to put forth extra effort because not only are they proud to be part of a company that treats staff right, but they're simply more motivated.


Employee Recruiting

Additionally, high employee wellbeing rates also have a direct impact on employee recruiting techniques. 

When businesses have a good reputation for wellbeing, those seeking jobs will place emphasis on this and be more likely to apply for positions. 

Adding onto this, employers who emphasize wellbeing are at a competitive advantage against rivals in the industry.

It's understandable that job seekers would gravitate towards a company that prioritizes wellness versus one that doesn't!

Lastly, staff who are happy with their work environment will naturally have positive things to say about it to others. This sort of word-of-mouth recommendation is key to attracting more talent!


Why Investing in Employee Wellbeing Is Critical

It's pretty easy to understand why employee wellbeing is a necessary investment. 

First off, it will make employees want to stick with a company long-term, leading to high rates of retention. Secondly, businesses that have great employee wellness initiatives are far more appealing to job-seekers than those that aren't. 

This investment will also boost your company against competitors, potentially making you an industry leader. 

And lastly, employees are far more likely to speak highly of a business that treats them right with proper wellness initiatives. Again, this helps to attract new employees to a brand. 


Bonus Tip: Track Employee Wellbeing Regularly

Consider running employee surveys to track wellbeing on a regular basis.

This will ensure employers stay on track with current trends and patterns within the workplace. Doing this is key, as employees can change their opinions and thoughts due to a variety of factors. 

Basically, brands could have one very successful employee survey but only doing it one time won't do much good. It's the continuous tracking that reveals the good stuff!


Contact Our Employee Survey Company

Improving employee wellbeing is essential for businesses looking for productivity and growth. 

Drive Research is a market research company based in New York. Our team of research pros have years of combined experience in employee satisfaction, and will work with businesses to deliver the best results based on their unique needs. 

Learn more about our market research services by getting in touch with us today! 

  1. Message us on our website
  2. Email us at [email protected]
  3. Call us at 888-725-DATA
  4. Text us at 315-303-2040

lark-allen-drive-research-aboutheauthor

Lark Allen

As a Content Marketing Specialist, Lark has a strong background and passion for creative, professional, and journalistic writing. She is also a self-proclaimed music freak and 90s enthusiast.

Learn more about Lark, here.


subscribe to our blog

 

Employee Surveys