A healthy and happy workforce can only be a good thing to an employer. When your employees are healthy, they’re able to do their jobs well. If they’re occupied by health problems, you could find they’re much less engaged and possibly miss more work too. Employers can’t possibly have total control over the health of their employees, but it doesn’t mean they have no role to play. There are things you can do as an employer if you want to help your employees be as healthy as possible.
By implementing some smart practices and policies in the workplace, you have the ability to help your employees be healthier. Start with the ideas below to help support your employees and make it easier for them to care for their health.
Keep the Workspace Clean
Hygiene is important in the workplace if you want to keep your employees healthy. Germs can be spread quickly if cleaning isn’t carried out regularly. Even in an office, it’s important to clean often, at least keeping bathrooms clean and wiping down surfaces. You might sometimes need to bring in extra services such as carpet cleaning services to take care of tasks that need to be carried out less often. You can also ask your employees to play their part in keeping the work environment clean. Cleaning up after themselves helps keep the space pleasant for everyone.
Encourage Taking Sick Leave
When employees feel that they can’t take time off when they’re ill, they’re more likely to come into work when feeling unwell. As well as making them less productive, they could also be spreading germs around the workspace. Encouraging them to take time off when ill helps to prevent illness from spreading. Make sure they know they won’t be punished for missing work. As well as offering sick pay, you could offer the option of working from home. Sometimes people are well enough to work but should still stay home to prevent their illness from being passed on to others.
Make Staying Fit Easier
Trying to fit exercise around other commitments is always tough, but you can play your part as an employer. You can create opportunities for your staff to exercise and make it easier for them to find the time to stay fit. Flexible working hours can allow people to exercise more easily before and after work, or even during their lunch break. Some employers might choose to subsidise gym memberships for their employees or perhaps arrange options for exercising during, before or after work. Even something as simple as offering longer lunches can give people the chance to go for a walk or run.
Incentivise Eating Healthily
Healthy eating can be difficult at work. People can rely on grabbing anything quick and there are often cakes or other treats that people bring in. If you want to help your employees eat more healthily, there are a few things you could do. Providing healthy snacks in vending machines or in the kitchen makes it easy for anyone to grab something to munch on when they want to make a healthy choice. You can even help them eat healthier at home by sharing recipes or providing access to virtual cooking classes.
Manage Stress
Stress is one of the biggest concerns when it comes to health in the workplace. Not only does it affect people mentally but people who are stressed can also get ill more easily too. As an employer, there’s plenty you can do to help monitor and manage stress levels. You’re directly responsible for the work that your employees have on their plates. To help manage stress in the workplace, you need to communicate well with your employees to find out how they’re coping. Do they have too much to do? Are they happy with their work-life balance?
Provide Employee Health Benefits
Health benefits are also a great thing to offer to your employees if you want them to be healthier. Private health insurance can give them the option of seeing a GP sooner or addressing minor health problems more easily. Paying for things like eye tests and hearing tests or dental insurance could be other options that your employees appreciate. These types of health benefits encourage your employees to take care of their health and can help to ensure they don’t neglect or delay the treatment they might need.
As an employer, you can do more than you might think to help your employees be healthier. Try asking them how you can help.