Employers aren’t just trying to attract and engage the best talent in their industry, they are also trying to retain them; and that means looking after them. At Top Employers, we certify companies all over the world, and whereas each country has its own special circumstances, I’m based in London, so I’ll use an example of what sort of workplace and health initiatives are going on with the companies we work with in the UK
According to research published earlier this year in‘The Lancet’ medical journal, the UK lags behind other European countries when it comes to reducing avoidable diseases. This of course, directly affects employers. And statistics from the research recently conducted by the Britain’s Healthiest Companies study show UK employers lose 131 million work days due to sickness each year. This means there’s a huge incentive for employers to invest in initiatives that will not only reduce sick days, but that will improve the long-term health of their workforce.
We had a lot of interest in our article last year that talked about the benefits of having an in-house doctor available for employees. The annual research that we do to certify Top Employers has shown us that organisations that have an in-house doctor available have significantly reduced absenteeism. In the UK, 44% of the companies we have currently certified have an in-house doctor available for their people. About ¾ of our Top Employers have an EAP, stress management training/ support, time management training/ support, and employee debt assistance. We’re seeing more progressive companies training their managers on how to identify the early signs of stress or burn-out so that these can be tackled before they become problems.
Many Top Employers are now covering dentistry, eye-care, annual medicals, mammograms, cholesterol testing, cardiovascular testing, mole checking and cancer awareness. 60% offer some kind of private medical insurance for their employees. We’re also seeing some interesting programmes being put in place to help encourage employees to stop smoking, lose weight and to learn about healthy eating and fitness. This even includes regional programmes that target different health challenges seen throughout the UK.
Our research shows an increase in our participants providing a range of free or subsidised programmes to encourage wellness, such as massages, Zumba classes, Yoga, Tai chi, Pilates, reflexology, chiropodists, sports clubs or even something simple like having fresh fruit brought into the office daily.
Finally, we’re seeing companies paying more attention to supporting sound mental health in employees throughout their organisation, by providing support programmes such as anti-bullying, good parenting, trauma support, and healthy relationships classes.
Health trends are different across the globe, but wherever you are, promoting healthy lifestyles is obviously a win-win situation for employees and employers alike.
Do you have any special workplace and health programmes in your organisation? We’d love to hear about them. Leave a comment or tweet us……..we love your feedback.
