Do you trust your employees?

I would like to think that many of you will say ‘yes’. But what about if I asked whether you trusted your employees if they said they were sick?

I would imagine that many of you will say ‘no’ or ‘not completely’ to this one, as we know that there are some employees who just want a day off and phone in sick. How about someone who is on long-term sickness absence of four weeks or more? Is that a different matter?

I’m assuming that many of you would say ‘yes, that’s different.’ Is that because they’ve been seen by a doctor or specialist and have a relevant fit note? Again, I’m going to assume that’s the case.

My next question is: ‘do you care about your employees?’I’m going to assume here that it’s a mix of yes and no. ‘Why are you asking that?’ some of you will be thinking. Well, it’s quite simple really. If you care about your employees, you’re more likely to support them in their times of need, especially if they’re sick.

This has a knock-on effect. In most cases, if an employee feels that the company they work for cares about their health and wellbeing, they will usually feel valued and therefore feel safe to raise concerns about their health and wellbeing as soon as a problem arises, instead of waiting and waiting until the problem gets a million times bigger than it needs to be.

With mental health, anxiety, and stress being some of the main reasons why employees are on long-term sickness absence, the above should be an essential part of every day at work.

So, how do you get to that level of trust?

Well, it’s not rocket science! In fact, it’s very easy. But there are steps which need to be taken in order to get there.

Line managers are the key. Some feel that they have to be hard-nosed in order to get the best out of their team, whereas others have a more open, and sometimes even a more sensitive, approach.

But generally, it has been shown that only 27% of line managers have received any formal training in health and wellbeing support for their team.

Those who have this training are more likely to have meaningful return-to-work conversations, rather than this just being a tick-box exercise. They are also more able to spot early warning signs of stress or pick up on absence patterns.

Many line managers have a fear of talking about health matters in case they say something they shouldn’t, or they may feel that they are making things worse. This is why there has to be a culture of two-way trust. Employees must be able to feel that they can bring up a health issue knowing that they are going to be understood and not judged.

Only 27% of line managers have received any formal training in health and wellbeing support for their team.

What training is needed?

Many line managers are promoted to the position due to their technical skills or know-how, which is great if all you need to control is how a job is done. Rarely is a line manager given any training in people skills or people management. They’re expected to ‘know’ how to deal with people.

There are many avenues the training could take, the main one being that they are given clear expectations of what managing people involves. This could quite easily be achieved by another manager mentoring them for a few months, seeing how things are done with compassion and care and not just ruling with an iron fist.

There could also be ongoing learning opportunities, and they could be given objectives which not only feature performance measures, but also wellbeing measures.

Moving forward

Line managers need confidence to deal with health issues; they need to be able to support a member of their team if needed; they also need to know that they have back-up from the company if it’s required.

With the proper training, and the trust of their team, a line manager can transform a workplace from being a reactive, ‘deal with it after it’s happened’ approach, to a proactive culture of care and support.

There is also the thought that prevention is very important. Companies could introduce wellbeing initiatives such as promoting physical health with gym subsidies, promoting healthy eating, focusing on mental health through mindfulness sessions, introducing stress management workshops, giving access to counselling services, and even supporting financial wellbeing with financial advisors – maybe through an Employee Assistance Programme.

Alternatively, try to foster a culture of good relationships and support with team-building activities, flexible and/or remote working or flexible hours to support the work-life balance.

In other words, foster a culture where everyone feels valued, supported and included.

See, it’s not rocket science!