Employee well-being for small businesses

As a small business owner, you may not have the luxury of an in-house HR department, therefore the responsibility for ensuring your employees’ well-being is down to you. Equipping your business with well-being initiatives and knowledge will help your employees to thrive within the work environment.

In this article, we look at the various ways small businesses can support employee well-being, from enhancing employee benefits to promoting physical exercise.

The importance of well-being at work

Your staff are your most important resource – prioritising employee well-being will help them to look after your customers, and in turn help your business to thrive.

There are many organisational benefits to ensuring employee well-being, including the below:

• Improve employee retention: Fostering a feeling of contentment and a strong team ethic in your organisation decreases staff turnover.
• Reduce absenteeism: Workplaces which care for their employees experience less uptake of sick days and a reduction in the associated costs.
• Boost productivity: A better well-being fosters higher levels of creativity and productivity, and an improvement in employee engagement.
• Enhance employee mood: Encouraging a positive workplace culture where well-being is prioritised helps to promote your team’s personal fulfilment and happiness.
• Attract top talent: A visibly happier workplace puts your business in a positive light when recruiting.
• Remain ethically responsible: Caring for your employees’ well-being comes under Duty of Care, ensuring employees are able to do their role in the healthiest way possible.

10 employee well-being initiatives

Running ongoing campaigns in your business that focus on the core areas of physical well-being and mental well-being helps you to ensure these topics remain front of mind, which shows you care about your staff whilst simultaneously reducing some of the stigma that might be involved with each of these sensitive issues.

As a small business, it is recognised that the costs assigned to employee management are typically much less than larger companies. However, Deloitte uncovered that there is a remarkable return on investment surrounding employee well-being, with every £1 spent on supporting the well-being of the workforce resulting in an average of £4.70 back in increased productivity.

1. Provide occupational health assessments

An occupational health assessment can help employees who may be struggling mentally, or physically, in the workplace. Results from such assessments make it possible for employers to create a more comfortable working environment by providing the right resources and equipment.

From identifying potential physical and mental health hazards such as awkward or cramped working conditions or excessive workloads, to making reasonable adjustments to support the individual needs of your employees, occupational health should be an integral part of your business.

2. Train managers to promote health and well-being

It is essential that all managers are trained on mental health awareness. Train your managers via certified courses, such as mental health first aid, to help create an ‘open door’ trusted culture where employees are able to open-up about issues which may be troubling them.

Finding out how your employees are feeling about themselves, their personal lives and how they feel about the workplace is important to encouraging employee productivity and job satisfaction. Listening to your staff and what they need will help you to resolve certain issues and create a better workplace culture in the long-term.

3. Encourage exercise

Exercise is a great way to help employees with self-esteem inside and outside of the office, working to improve how they feel. An example of how a company can easily promote better physical health and exercise for its employees is via a cycle to work scheme – whilst this might not be an option for those who commute from far away, for local workers it can be a great way to keep fit and save money.

Subsidised gym memberships are another great way of providing a fantastic health benefit to your staff. For small businesses, a more economic way to encourage exercise is to mix physical health with their employee socials via walks or hikes in the countryside, 5-a-side football, and other bonding events such as away days and in-house running clubs.

4. Catch up with your staff regularly

Informal one-to-one chats are a great way to utilise mental health training, provide genuine support and, especially, keep up-to-date with how your employees are feeling. These personable engagements with your employees require a level of empathy, and as a manager, you must display your listening and understanding skills. Running regular engagement surveys is an alternative way to receive feedback and retrieve real-time insights into employee well-being, allowing for employees to keep their opinions anonymous if they wish.

Employees’ thoughts and feelings are vital to the running of your small business, especially when it comes to making decisions regarding workloads and deadlines.

5. Host social events

Hosting regular social events can help to encourage social connections between employees, making sure to arrange team activities away from people’s desks, and preferably away from the office. However, it is important not to inadvertently create division when you are looking to create harmony. If you run some social events during your work hours, then those who have personal commitments outside of work will feel included. Fostering social relationships within the workplace is incredibly important to employee well-being, with positive social interactions leading to increased happiness and less stress.

You can ask staff members if they would like to organise any socials – some of which could be funded by your small business.

6. Signpost help and advice

It is important to provide mental health resources, clearly signposting to your staff where they can get free, confidential help and advice if they need it. There are many options available for those who may need some independent advice, such as Independent Mental Health Advocated from Mind.

If you have the resources available to invest, then introducing an employee assistance programme can help via confidential information, advice, and even counselling if it is required. Many health insurance providers offer this type of service in their policy options.

7. Enhance your employee benefits

Offering employee health insurance and well-being benefits, such as access to health services or private health insurance, is beneficial for sustaining employee well-being.

The benefits you are able to offer will vary depending on the size of your business and the business sector you operate in. However, the selection you offer should always focus on quality over quantity. HR automation platform, Charlie, advises recognising that individuals have unique well-being requirements, and therefore your employee benefits should be tailored to accommodate to diverse needs. Some examples include childcare vouchers and employee discounts, as well as the benefits mentioned to encourage exercise, such as subsidised gym memberships and the Government backed Cycle to Work scheme.

Regularly reviewing the benefits which you offer to employees can help employers remain up-to-date with the benefits which support staff well-being.

8. Offer flexible working to your staff

Adopting flexible working hours and arrangements, such as hybrid or remote working, can help employees to protect their well-being. An article from Acas highlights the vast benefits which flexible working has on employees, including helping staff to prevent burnout, protecting their mental health, and preventing any negative health impacts for those with additional responsibilities or needs. Remarkably, a study from Harvard and Penn State universities uncovered that flexible working reduces someone’s risk of having a heart attack or stroke.

Flexibility doesn’t always mean working from home: you could offer different work hours to the typical 9am to 5pm working day. This means a working parent can pick up their children from school, rather than having their children to attend an after-school club for a couple of hours.

9. Recognise employee effort and performance

A simple way to help an employee feel better is to genuinely thank them for their hard work. Refrain from waiting for quarterly meetings or specific business events to thank your employees for their hard work – if a member of staff has gone the extra mile, or continues to perform their job to a high-standard, thank them and make them feel appreciated.

10. Encourage switching off

Encouraging employees to take the annual leave they are entitled to is important to ensuring they take time to switch off. If you have a team which works in a dedicated office space, enforcing breaks away from desks and screens is a simple rule to have which can support well-being. For some small businesses it may not be possible, but if you have the flexibility, discourage people from working unnecessary overtime.

Initiatives such as paid volunteering days can make people feel good about themselves by giving back to the community whilst offering them an opportunity, two or three days a year, to experience a change of scenery from the workplace. It can also provide good PR for your organisation whilst helping to strengthen your organisation’s links with the local community.

When your employees take time off and use their allocated holiday time, you are able to create a happier, more engaged and productive team.

Discover more help & guidance for small businesses, here, or read about our small business insurance solutions.

Please note: This article provides guidance for information purposes only. It should not be relied upon wholly when making or taking important business decisions – always seek the services of an appropriately qualified professional. The views expressed by websites referenced to are limited to those of the websites, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Markel Direct.