The Growth of Well-being Washing

All Talk, No Action.

As long as a company is perceived to have a well-being procedure in place, it can publicly announce support and the benefit it provides for its workforce. Unfortunately, a large number of companies are publicly advocating for things they do not do. This act is known as well-being washing. Mental health awareness day and other events have had a very good effect on raising the well-being profile of employees. Research from Claro wellbeing shows that 1 in 3 employers is involved in well-being washing. There is a failure in employers to provide the processes needed to focus on employees’ well-being.

This is becoming more apparent with employees still reporting a very high level of stress and immense workload whilst some employers hide under the ‘building resilience’ banner. There seems to be a lot of effort in promoting well-being that is not practically applied within the workplace. More than 20 million people are inactive in the UK and in 2021 England Mental Health Services received a record of over 4.3 million people referrals, citing it as the biggest hit to well-being in a generation. The cost of living crisis has not made things any easier. It is therefore very important for employees to receive the right support and for employers to put the mechanism in place to support their staff effectively but also to ensure the productivity boost improves business outcomes.

It has to be a win-win says Claire, a health and well-being manager for Lead Learning. The leadership culture has to change but employees’ behaviour has to match these changes. Behavioural change is sometimes difficult to implement because it needs a thorough audit of the organisation's current structure. It is easier to go with the trend than to apply best practices and processes.

Of recent, well-being at work has become a major focus. The many different types of employee support needed, from childcare to medical expenses need to be effectively addressed by employers and cannot be treated as a separate issue outside of work. What impacts employees outside of work can have a drastic impact in the workplace especially if left ignored.

THE FIRST STEP: THE RIGHT SUPPORT

Market what you do that works not what you want to do. There is no point in introducing mental health first aiders if you have not created an environment where employees can freely share their experiences. It becomes just a title with no purpose. Priority should be to examine what you currently do well, what support you need to make accessible to your workforce and devise a strategy to implement those changes. A yearly review of this strategy via audits, well-being workshops, training, or employee survey will reinforce its practicality and impact. Barns health have helped over 1877 business devised well-being strategies and solutions that are tailored to their workforce and can prioritise employee well-being and productivity.

Employers want to ensure that their investment can be measured not just in the quality of delivery but how it caters for its staff. This can be done by reducing sick days, better retention of staff and also improving the company's growth and balance sheet.

THE SECOND STEP: EDUCATION

Make resources available for staff as part of their yearly training, induction or workshop development. Sylvia Brown from Writable has seen a tremendous rate of engagement from her staff on the self-help resources made available. Staff do an online CPD Training lasting about 45 mins which encompasses health and well-being at work and get a certificate and access to a range of well-being resources on all major topics. This sets the scene for the type of support that is available and how employees should prioritise their health. It has been extremely valuable and has helped educate a diverse workforce about taking care of their health.

THE THIRD STEP: LEADERSHIP CULTURE CHANGE

Well-being Workplace Transformation can be very effective if the leadership is engaged. Work culture is influenced by beliefs, behaviours, practices and processes. Optimising each part of these steps and aligning them with the right well-being strategy can inevitably lead to a healthy workplace. A Leadership Workshop Training can unlock the disparity between well-being promotion and its implementation. Leading well-being conversation for leaders is a popular workshop by Practice Solution that has seen leaders successfully transform their workplace culture and create an environment where well-being conversations are confidently shared and acted upon.

CREATING TANGIBLE CHANGE

Ultimately, to successfully prioritise well-being and overcome well-being washing, a whole organisational approach is needed.