Why poor wellbeing support is costing you your best employees

With the number of new job opportunities rising, employees now have more choice than ever before. This means businesses must go beyond simply offering a competitive salary in order to recruit and retain employees. They have to show that they care.

Employees are looking beyond salaries and job role expectations, and instead are searching for a workplace that they can call home. They are seeking employers that genuinely care about their wellbeing – including what support is in place, and what the company values.

What happens if they get ill? What if they have a bad mental health day, or their menopause symptoms flare up? Will they get leave if a family member passes away? When bad times happen, employees want to know that their employers will treat them with kindness, not like a cog in a machine.

Having wellbeing support is therefore crucial not only to support your employees when they’re having a difficult time, but also to attract and retain talent in an increasingly competitive landscape.

Did you know?

• 73% of UK workers have left or thought about leaving their place of work because of their employer’s lack of wellbeing support.

The impact of no wellbeing support

Without proper wellbeing support in place, your business can be affected in many ways:

Low staff morale

If employees are suffering from poor wellbeing and the employer has nothing in place to support them, this can affect their motivation and attitude regarding work. They’re likely to feel undervalued, unhappy, and disconnected from their employer. This can rub off on other employees too, who can pick up on the sentiment – creating a negative working environment.

Decreased productivity

If employees do not feel supported with their wellbeing and are struggling with either their mental of physical health, they will struggle to maintain their focus. An employee that feels overwhelmed will not be operating at full potential, which will lead to a noticeable decline in productivity.

High stress

With no support system in place, employees can’t get any release or respite from their issues. And due to decreased productivity, they may fall behind on their work, causing them to worry. This leads to increasing levels of stress which only perpetuates the original issue.

More frequent absences

If an employee is suffering with their physical or mental health, they may be absent more often. Not only is this potentially stressful for the employee, it will result in a financial cost for the business and well as impacting colleagues who may have to take on additional duties.

High staff turnover

All of this together could mean a high staff turnover rate, as demotivated and overworked employees leave the business for competitors who have better wellbeing policies in place. Of course, this will increase financial costs to the business: from recruitment costs, to training of new employees. Not to mention impacting the staff who have to pick up extra work as roles are emptied and filled.

Reputation

As employees could potentially voice any disgruntlements via word of mouth, social media or a review website, this could harm your company’s reputation. It could also make it more difficult to hire new employees in the future who see these comments and decide not to apply to your vacancy!

The benefits of improving employee wellbeing

On the flip side of this, caring about your employees – and crucially, putting the support in place to show this – will benefit not just your staff, but your business too. Here’s how.

Increase employee retention

If employees feel supported, valued and part of the business, they’ll be more likely to stay with you for longer. By investing in your employee’s wellbeing, it will make them feel valued. You’re showing the company has compassion, cares about them, and is invested in them and their long-term success.

Increase productivity

If your employees are healthy and happy they will of course be more focused, motivated, and energised. This boost to productivity increases their own job satisfaction as well as their contribution to business goals.

Enhance reputation

Showing you care about your employees is news that will naturally spread from existing employees to potential new ones. This will help to attract the best talent when recruiting and help keep your current employees happy with your company.

Work-life balance

Offering wellbeing options such as as flexible working and mental health days means your employees enjoy a better work-life balance, helping them maintain what they need to do in their personal life and bring their best, happiest selves into the workplace everyday.

Examples of employee wellbeing initiatives

Offering wellbeing support shows your employees that you are invested in their wellbeing.

Here are some examples of the benefits you could provide:

• Employee assistance programme
• Private health services
• Flexible working hours
• Home working or hybrid working options
• Holiday buy schemes or unlimited holidays
• Mental health days
• Mental health first aiders

These aren’t just employee benefits, but a sign to your staff that you care.