By Richard Ellis, sales director at Vivup
We all know that having good overall fitness helps us to avoid injuries and fight infections and illness. So, what can we do to encourage staff to look after themselves and keep fit? Here are a few ideas to boost employee wellbeing:
Increase uptake of the flu vaccine
When Autumn comes around, with it comes coughs, colds and the flu. Some people in high-risk groups can receive a free flu jabs at their local GP surgery or pharmacy. It’s important that all staff members are aware of flu vaccinations to minimise their risk of contracting a virus as part of an overall health and wellbeing strategy.
Support smokers in quitting
Sickness absence is one third higher for smokers than non-smokers, and they are also more likely to be absent for longer due to ill health – UK Centre for Tobacco Control Studies. Running a smoking cessation programme, including nicotine replacement therapy, has been proven to work at some organisations
Challenge your staff to be more active
Introducing some healthy competition to become more active is a great way to get everyone involved, and also create a culture of wellbeing. While you could devise your own challenges, rewards and methods of monitoring employee activity, there are plenty of digital options that can make this easier to run. Gamification and rewards can be used to increase employee wellbeing. There are a number different health and fitness apps on the market that can be used to collate data and incentivise your staff. Many wellbeing apps integrate with employees’ existing fitness devices – helping them get more use out of these too.
Access to Occupational Health
It’s important to keep your employees physically and mentally well at work. The aim of occupational health is to prevent work-related illness and injury among staff, while also providing support to employees coming back to work. Having a workplace occupational health service gives your staff and managers rapid access to professional specialist advice, which will help protect and support them with any health issues in the workplace.
To successfully implement the ideas above, wellbeing schemes and initiatives need to be communicated proactively to all employees. This can be done through marketing materials, communications such as email and social media, or by getting ambassadors from within the team to promote your incentives to other staff.
Get in touch if you would like to discuss in more detail how to boost health and wellbeing in your organisation. Call 01252 784 541 or email [email protected]