Health & Wellbeing At Work Benefits Boost Productivity, Help Retain Staff

As if there weren’t enough reasons for employers to provide health and wellbeing at work benefits, new research shows that they boost employee productivity.

According to the Association of British Insurers (ABI), 60% of SMEs say offering health and wellbeing at work benefits to staff increases productivity. The research, which was conducted in October last year, found that three in five (60%) SMEs acknowledge that providing health and wellbeing benefits at work has a high impact on supporting their organisation’s productivity.

Among medium-size businesses, this figure rises to 69%. Meanwhile, 22% of SMEs rated having health and wellbeing benefits at work as being crucial for ensuring high productivity.

Day One Statements now a legal requirement

However, only one in five (20%) organisations indicated that they understood they have a legal requirement to provide staff with information relating to benefits on their first day at work.

Charlie Campbell, ABI manager, Health and Protection, commented: "Keeping up to speed with new legal requirements can be difficult, especially during a pandemic... But Day One Statements are not just a legal requirement - they are an opportunity to boost wellbeing and productivity at a time when employee health has never been more important to ensuring a healthy and productive workforce."

Day One Statements are documents outlining details relating to an employee’s role, such as their hours of work and holiday entitlement. They became a legal requirement for employers back in April 2020.

According to ABI's research, 59% of SMEs said they would value more information to help explain their legal requirements and allow them to maximise the opportunity to promote health and wellbeing benefits to their staff.

Employee values and wellbeing to define retention for employers

Meanwhile, separate research by MetLife has found that employers must accommodate staff health and wellbeing or face losing them to other organisations. 

The research revealed that while higher pay (65%) and job security (62%) are still what employees value the most, health and wellbeing initiatives are quickly catching up. Indeed, the report shows that by making adjustments that positively impact employees’ mental or physical wellbeing, organisations can realise positive results. In fact, 39% of employees said they would stay with their current employer if their manager demonstrated more care for their mental wellbeing.

These findings are hardly surprising given the fallout experienced from the Covid-19 pandemic.

The MetLife report also found that more than half (59%) of employees will start looking for a new job if their work values aren't accommodated. Similarly, 53% of staff are considering leaving their current role over the next 18 months

During the last 12 months employees have become more aware than ever about health and wellbeing at work and are demanding support from their employer.  Talk to our experts today who will be able to help you decide on the most suitable benefits for your business to boost engagement with existing staff and attract new employees.