Employers feel that strong physical and mental health are essential for increasing production and, eventually, profitability, according to research from Vitality.
In a recent study conducted by Vitality in collaboration with CBI Economics with 352 C-Suite executives, it was found that 69 per cent of employers cite productivity levels as a driving force behind the introduction of improved health and wellbeing policies, with staff hiring and attrition coming in at 52 per cent.
But even though executives are developing a business case for employee welfare and are aware of the advantages of a hybrid workplace, more than half or 59 per cent find it difficult to customise the support to meet individual needs. A third or 32 per cent even find it difficult to implement health and wellbeing support for a hybrid workforce.
According to the report, businesses lack the necessary time and resources to support employee health and wellbeing, and more than a third or 36 per cent of company leaders cite this as a barrier. Another 31 per cent lack the knowledge to implement or change health and wellbeing policies, indicating that company leaders still need direction in this area a year after hybrid working became law.
Additional research, commissioned by Vitality and done by Censuswide over the same time period among 2,005 UK office workers, revealed a fundamental shift in the employment relationship. More than two-thirds or 44 per cent of workers want their managers to step up and do more to fulfil their demands for health and wellbeing. Eight in ten workers or 82 per cent believe their company has a larger duty to offer help.
More than two thirds or 66 per cent of respondents now choose flexible working as the best health and wellbeing benefit an employer may provide when asked which health and wellbeing assistance is best. Despite this, employees are divided over which work environment best suits their needs, with 46 per cent believing hybrid working to be the best for mental health, compared to 26 per cent believing remote working to be the best, and 27 per cent believing office working to be the best. This could all be the reason why businesses find it challenging to tailor their support accordingly.
Vitality UK CEO Neville Koopowitz says: “One year on from when many businesses made hybrid working a reality for their teams, UK bosses are clearly recognising the business case that having a healthy workforce brings. However, they are grappling with how to do this in a hybrid world, when we are also seeing increasing employee expectations and demand for more tailored and personalised health and wellbeing support – regardless of their location or working environment.
“What is clear is that there is no magic solution, no one size fits all approach. It requires the right technology and data to understand the make-up of your business and the individuals within it, so that you can formulate the optimal employee engagement strategy. It also needs to be prioritised at the very top of a business to foster a deep-rooted commitment to health and wellbeing at all levels. This is both a challenge and opportunity for business leaders. Get it right – and businesses will unlock greater productivity and retention.
“This approach is firmly built on our shared value philosophy; a way of working that delivers for people, society and for the economy.”
CBI Health programme director Jordan Cummins says: “For many, the world of work looks markedly different in the wake of the pandemic, with firms and employees working together to hone their own hybrid futures. Yet flexible working is just one facet of a growing business focus on wellbeing, with employee health increasingly now regarded as a sensible investment rather than a cost to be managed.
“With employee expectations undergoing a similarly seismic shift, firms which fail to evolve their health provision risk being left behind by more proactive competitors. There are big prizes on offer for companies which develop the right package for their workers. It can be easier to recruit and retain staff, job satisfaction rises while sickness absences decrease – and there are productivity gains too. This makes good health both a critical pillar of business success and a key driver of economic growth and societal prosperity.”