What’s stopping Briton’s workforce from being healthier? Is it added workloads because of redundancies or others absence? Or the lack of a good night’s sleep! How can employers engage in employee health and wellbeing to get Britain working better?

The spotlight is increasingly falling on the health issues of the UK population and, in particular, how these impact on the country’s workforce, let alone our economy. Good employee health is good business and has a part to play in the overall economy, crucially as the UK comes out of the recession. And there are certainly a number of employers that have placed the health and wellbeing of workers centre stage, tackling absence and turnover.

Research conducted at end of 2009 and early in 2010 has identified a considerable gap between those organisations taking the issue seriously and those paying lip service. According to the new research data, 72 percent of workers put in more than their basic hours, with over a quarter working late every day. This seems to suggest that binge working is ingrained in today’s work culture, with the recession definitely impacting on working habits as nearly half (43 percent) say these have changed in the last year. In fact, working late seems to be standard practice now, with nearly a third of workers staying after hours twice a week and 27 percent working overtime every day.

They are not alone, nearly half (48 percent) said their colleagues work overtime too. But, despite this apparent increased pressure to work longer hours, it seems that there is quite a strong ‘team spirit’ in the working environment, with workers pulling together in order to cope with mounting workloads which may have been caused by redundancies or budget cuts. One in three said they now work longer hours to meet increased deadlines and targets. 18 percent are actually putting in longer hours because they are worried about job security and feel the extra hours will perhaps send the right message to their employer. But could this be a fallacy? Data certainly seems to indicate that these increased workloads are, not surprisingly, having an impact on workers health and, as a result, increasing absence levels.

Thiry-six percent of respondents to a subsequent survey conducted amongst UK workers said they believe their work impacts negatively on their health, with half saying they feel more tired and nearly one in four having problems with sleeping.
With UK workers under pressure to hold onto their jobs, it’s easy for the stresses of the working day to manifest themselves in sleepless or restless nights. Dedicated research on sleeping habits found that 13 percent of UK workers get less than five hours per night, compared to 69 percent getting between six and seven hours. Only a lucky 16 percent sleep for eight hours per night. Lack of sleep has an impact on an individual’s performance at work. With 71 percent saying they suffer from broken sleep, this is not good news for employers who clearly want their staff to be on top of their game, thinking on their feet and productive.

So is there an answer? The case for employee engagement was recently highlighted in a report by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) – Engaging for Success*. An in-depth look at employee engagement revealed a clear correlation between engagement and performance – and most importantly between improving engagement to improve performance. In particular, the report highlighted the benefits employee engagement could bring to UK competitiveness, taking businesses through the downturn and well into the recovery by ensuring employees have a voice and feel part of the long-term strategy of the business.

As the report said, “Engagement matters because people matter – they are your only competitive edge. It is people, not machines that will make the difference and drive the business.” A review of the health of Britain’s working age population by Dame Carol Black, published at the end of 2008, also focused on the role of the employer in the health and wellbeing of its staff. The report concluded that “a shift in attitudes is necessary to ensure that employers and employees recognise not only the importance of preventing ill-health, but also the key role the workplace can play in promoting health and well-being.”

But has the recession put the brakes on initiatives that could have seen employers engaging with their workers to create a stronger health and wellbeing ethos? Are short-term decisions to cut costs actually going to cost much more in the long-term? When evaluating the cost and time to a business in investing in employee health and wellbeing programmes, this needs to be compared to the cost and valuable time lost when employees are absent from the workplace. The pressure this puts on the organisation should also be factored in, particularly for those businesses with a small number of employees.

Introducing health and wellbeing programmes in the workplace, and they don’t need to be expensive, engages employees, empowering them to monitor and manage their own health. Simply ensuring they are adequately hydrated is a great start. And it’s important not to forget that most people in employment spend the majority of their time at work, making the workplace an ideal place to raise awareness of health issues that will benefit the employer, and the UK economy as a whole.

Source
*Engaging for Success, published July 2009
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