Celebrate National Wellness Month this August
Wellness includes mental, psychological and physical health; don’t dismiss it!
Employee wellness is at a crossroads in 2024. Despite increased attention from employers, mental and emotional health challenges remain distressingly common in the workplace. In a recent ADP survey, nearly half of employees said their work has suffered due to poor mental health. Additionally, the number one cited workspace challenge was burnout.[i] These results should serve as a wakeup call for businesses, especially when you consider the consequences.
Many business leaders know turnover is a huge driver of costs, with some estimates saying that replacing a worker can cost “half to four times the employee’s annual salary.”[ii] That means if you’re “hiring for a job that pays $60,000, you could be spending upwards of $180,000 to fill that role.”[iii]
Given these costs, investing in employee wellness is not just beneficial — it’s essential. To mark National Wellness Month this August, we spoke with Alliant National HR Director Stacy Stolen about the significance of wellness and how agencies can better address this crucial need.
The multifaceted nature of wellness
Most people would agree that workplace wellness matters. However, if you asked folks about what exactly goes into wellness, you’d probably get a range of answers. That’s because wellness isn’t one thing but the “culmination of one’s mental, psychological AND physical health,” said Stolen. “Achieving wellness is a uniquely individual experience,” she continued. “It’s based on one’s lifestyle, identities, cultural understanding and commitment level to change.” Businesses must embrace this idea and approach wellness with something more than a one-size-fits-all approach.
The relationship between wellness and inclusion
Naturally, this means wellness connects with inclusion, a topic previously explored on this blog. Inclusion initiatives, said Stolen, “help employees feel safe bringing more of themselves to work.” This approach is different from what has often been done historically, which required employees to downplay “parts of themselves for purposes of assimilation.” When companies show that they genuinely value every team member’s knowledge, skills, input and life experience, they help foster an inclusive culture which, in turn, promotes employee wellness. This doesn’t happen automatically, said Stolen. It requires “a trusting relationship between employer and employee” born out of a company making “intentional and informed choices that allow [employes] to fully show up and contribute their maximum potential.”
Connecting the individual to the collective
How does a business make space for everyone’s individual needs while still focusing on its collective identity and goals? For Stolen, it is a symbiotic relationship. “By working collaboratively with each other through the process of learning and unlearning,” she said, “we can ensure the success of the individual AND the collective.”
Much of this can be accomplished by simply reframing the golden rule of “treating others as you want to be treated,” to treating “others as they want to be treated.” By doing so, employees stop seeing everything solely through the lens of personal experiences. Over time, a culture emerges where employees genuinely want to recognize the experiences of others. That’s because they will feel confident that their own experiences and abilities will also be respected and embraced.
Wellness in action at Alliant National
There are numerous ways that organizations can cultivate wellness in the workplace. Here are of some of tools and resources Alliant National has created to contribute to the wellness of staff and external agents:
- A standing activity at all-company calls,which is designed to give executive leadership a moment to address staff concerns and increase transparency.
- An “Employee Resource Group,” which champions “Caring” across all levels and functions of the organization.
- A paid volunteer day for all employees.
- An “employee engagement team” whose purpose is to create an environment where employees feel engaged, rewarded and personally committed.
- All-staff wellness challenges, such as a recent “Fitness Challenge.”
- “Mental Health Awareness” month activities, wheremanagers focus on encouraging work/life balance, sharing mental health resources and making space for employees to find support.
- CEO email check-ins on employee stress levels.
- The Alliant National Employee Assistance Program (EAP), which delivers free, professional and confidential support and guidance to employees and their families in the following areas:
- Family
- Work
- Money
- Legal services
- Identity theft recovery
- Health
- Everyday life concerns
- Company-wide, HR-led meetings that are specifically geared toward addressing wellness.
The lasting importance of wellness
When asked for her final thoughts on wellness, Stolen was unequivocal: “The work we do is already stressful, right? We don’t need to add additional layers and barriers to entry. Instead, we want to open doors and drive innovation. We must rethink what we’ve been taught about others and center employee wellness as a foundational pillar to company success.”
Ensuring that all employees feel their experiences and capabilities are valued can go a long way toward building this type of wellness and helping businesses thrive. Incorporating strategies and resources such as those listed earlier can be similarly effective.
Stolen reinforced these ideas, noting that when companies take these steps, everyone benefits. “Toxic workplaces obviously can damage one’s mental state, whereas an inclusive and safe environment can motivate people,” she said. “Companies should want to address these issues because it’s the right thing to do and because it’s a business necessity. If you don’t ensure employee wellbeing, it can have negative impacts on your team and lead to poor business outcomes.”
[i] People at Work 2023: A Global Workforce View – ADP Research Institute (ADPRI)
[ii] The Real Costs Of Employee Turnover In 2024 (applauz.me)
[iii] Ibid