Today’s post is written by a guest blogger, Julie Morris, is a career coach and writer who reached out to me via my website. She wrote a piece about benefits that employers can offer to improve the well-being of their employees that goes beyond throwing a pizza party. These suggestions go beyond performative “wellness initiatives” and actually set up benefits that improve quality of life.
Improving Employee Wellness with Innovative Benefits
Today, companies are having to take extra steps to separate themselves from the competition. A labor shortage has made both recruitment and retention more challenging, causing businesses to struggle to locate and keep the talent they need to thrive.
In response, some leading companies are going the extra mile, adding unique benefits that can improve employee wellness. If you’re curious about what’s being offered, Resiliency Mental Health takes a look at some of the innovative benefits that are making waves today.
Innovative Benefits That Improve Employee Wellness
Financial Planning
For many people, money is one of their biggest sources of stress. Since stress can negatively impact employee wellness, some companies are responding by offering comprehensive financial planning services.
Along with assistance with retirement plan selections, these confidential programs assist employees with budgeting, saving for a home, planning for college costs, and more. It helps workers get on firmer financial footing, ensuring they can reach their goals with the greatest amount of ease.
Nutritional Guidance
Companies are becoming nutrition-oriented with some of their benefits. Along with nutrition videos and intranet posts, some are hosting virtual cooking classes for meals featuring healthy, easy-to-find, low-cost ingredients. That way, more people can learn crucial techniques and tips, increasing the odds that they’ll eat healthily moving forward.
Stress Reduction Resources
Overall, 94 percent of employees experience stress at work, and 54 percent say that it’s significant enough that it impacts their home life on at least a weekly basis. Since stress can be detrimental, an increasing number of companies are offering stress-reduction resources internally.
Whether it’s on-site yoga classes or videos demonstrating deep breathing techniques, the goal is to make the resources accessible. That way, workers have a place to turn when they are feeling the pressure, ensuring they can relieve it quickly.
Mental Health Counseling
An estimated 20 percent of Americans have some form of mental health condition. In many cases, counseling is one of the most recommended treatment options.
However, around 24 percent of employees aren’t sure how to access mental healthcare services using employer-provided benefits, causing them to miss out on crucial care. Even if they do, their mental health coverage may be lacking, leading to incredibly high out-of-pocket expenses that make them resistant to get the care they need.
Due to that, some companies are working to make mental health coverage more accessible through innovative mental health counseling programs. Resiliency Mental Health offers a wide range of mental health resources and services. These services aren’t just confidential but are also are far more straightforward than traditional options. Plus, companies are covering a larger percentage – if not all of – the cost, ensuring employees can get the support they need without a financial burden.
Using a Team-Centric Approach to Benefits
While all of the benefits above are potentially worth offering, that doesn’t mean they should automatically become an employer’s priorities. Every workforce is different, so the team members won’t universally have the same needs.
If you want to make sure that you’re choosing the right approach for your workplace, conduct an employee satisfaction survey every year. That way, you can learn more about what matters to your team, ensuring you are offering benefits that genuinely make a difference in their lives.
