Strategies to boost employee participation in wellness programs!

Companies in the last few years have started prioritising employee wellbeing, addressing the pertinent needs of their staff as well as recognising how it can support productivity and business outcomes. Whether its hiring EAP services or mental health workshops, all these are a step in the right direction for the long-term growth and benefit of the company as well as every individual. 

However, what organisations seem to struggle with still is to figure out how to keep participation continued and sustained in a way that organisers feel the incentive to continue and receive a Return on Investment, as well as to ensure that employees gain the maximum from this. 

What are the reasons for low employee participation?

One of the biggest obstacles faced by organisations has been increasing employee participation when conducting wellness programs. The first part of this is to explore what are the initiatives part of the wellness program and what is reception for each different thing. Some services may be used than others, and that is useful to know! 

Some of the reasons employees may be reluctant to, or are not able to attend wellness programs are:

• Time restrictions and lack of motivation: Taking time out of your day close to a deadline or work-related travel can be a tough call to make, and people may choose to finish work and to feel at peace over attending a wellness session. People may find topics of workshops repetitive, uninteresting, and difficult to implement and choose not to attend them.
• Company culture: It helps to see that management and other employees practice self-care and use services themselves, to motivate and model everyone to make use of provided services, and know that it is okay to do so.
• Inconsistent communication: A big gap in the company’s implementing wellness services is the limited communication, lack of reminders or giving reminders too late.
• Stigma and depersonalisation - Chaitali Sinha, a practitioner-researcher and psychologist at HAQ: Center for Child Rights, says that this ‘cocktail of stigma and ignorance’ continues to prevent many Indians from accessing mental health care.

Here are proven strategies to boost engagement in wellness programs

Have a range of services

Health care is NOT a one-size-fits-all situation, and remembering diverse needs is crucial to building a broad and useful wellness program. You must cater to the emotional, physical and financial health of individuals while keeping in mind their larger interest areas. Ensure that you have services for individuals as well as groups. 

Let the employees choose what they like

Once you start offering varied services, allow and encourage people to use those that feel work for them. While some may prefer using self-paced services, some might enjoy attending group spaces with friends. Ensure that all participation is voluntary, and names are not tracked. 

Wellness champions

To sustain the impact of your wellbeing programme over the long run, have wellbeing advocates/champions. They can be volunteers from across verticals that serve as points of contact between employees and HR or vendors. They must be trained to be non-judgemental and be on good terms with all employees to be able to receive feedback and encourage them to participate in these programs. 

Having Wellbeing Champions also shows that the company is invested in employee wellness and encourages discussions around wellbeing and seeking support.

Leadership and example

The study "Transformational leadership and employee wellbeing" from 2019, shows that leaders who actively promote wellness initiatives positively influence employee perceptions of the organization’s commitment to health and well-being.

Consistent communication 

Finding the in-between of too many emails versus barely any is crucial for reminding folk about existing services, changes or anything upcoming. Using a calendar is one way to set reminders for all, but having posters around offices, and asking Wellbeing Champions or Team Leads to mention these are also useful. 

Atmosphere of wellbeing 

Ultimately, wellbeing is something we learn from each other, and programs will be effective when people start to feel that they are valued as employees and that their time is respected. You can - 

• Encourage employees to take regular time off and have Do Not Disturb holiday weeks
• Allow for flexibility during the workday - this may be with timings, work-from-anywhere options, or taking breaks during the day
• Offer mental health days that can be taken at least once a month, to once in two months
• Offer financial/concrete incentives, like annual appraisals or end-of-year bonuses - as financial satisfaction is necessary for retention
• You can also celebrate birthdays and work anniversaries and create consistent spaces to appreciate one’s progress in a group, and individually.
• Offer healthy snacks and fitness resources
• Invest in professional development of employees

Continuous evaluation

A Study on The role of feedback in organizational change in 2019 showed that regular feedback mechanisms are needed to assess the effectiveness of wellness programs and make informed adjustments to impact employee wellbeing. Often organisations end up conducting too many wellbeing programs and employees feel overwhelmed to attend these. Feedback done mindfully can give information that can make a huge difference in implementation and employee participation. 

In conclusion 

Organisations need to be proactive when it comes to wellbeing and healthcare, providing transparent and holistic wellbeing solutions. This includes a shift in how we think about wellness programmes itself – not as a reaction to a problem, but in terms of creating an organisational culture of wellness and including the service users in the decision-making process. When offerings are fun and useful, people will want to utilise them! 

FAQs

How can I promote work-life balance in my organization?

Promoting work-life balance can be achieved through flexible work hours, remote work options, and encouraging employees to take breaks and vacations. Leadership should model this behavior to reinforce its importance.

How can I measure the success of wellness initiatives?

Success can be measured through employee surveys, participation rates in wellness programs, health outcome improvements (like reduced absenteeism), and overall employee satisfaction scores. Regular assessments help refine programs.