Here at Ballie Lumber, we continue to provide employees with key health information and resources. For example, last year we enabled employees to get influenza vaccines and we encouraged participation in a “Fall Fitness Challenge.” Additionally, we did everything possible to promote employee health by supporting the use of masks, social distancing, regular sanitation, and other proper hygiene protocols.
Whether it is one of our skilled hardwood lumber graders at one of our sawmills to our knowledgeable lumber traders in our corporate office, in order to ensure our customers continue to receive the high-quality hardwood lumber products and service they need to be successful, our team needs to feel their best.
Looking to bolster the wellness of your dedicated and valued team members? Here are tips on promoting employee wellness we found useful. Maybe they will help you in your organization:
Keep employees informed about back-to-work safety conditions. Uncertainty remains about exactly how best to reopen businesses while maintaining employee health. Regular communication on health topics is essential, while also keeping employees “apprised of changes being made to address social distancing” and other precautions, says The Baltimore Business Journal.
It’s also important to provide information about “flexible or staggered schedules, telework, cleaning protocols, and anything else your company is doing to ease the transition and ensure safety.”
Survey and motivate employees. You may feel like you know your workforce well enough to provide appropriate information on wellness and health. But what if your employees have different ideas? Consider surveying team members to assess their overall interest in wellness efforts and to identify specific areas of concern vital to them. Then you can tailor your approach to wellness in meaningful ways.
Additionally, think about key motivators that can spur employees to take action. These can range from team or individual health-related contests (with friendly competition) and gift cards to discounts on certain health premiums. The goal here is to instill employees’ pride in setting health goals and then sticking to them.
Communicate the importance of health. Demonstrating a commitment to your employees’ well-being can go a long way in terms of getting the team’s buy-in. As The WellRight Blog suggests, you can boost motivation “by holding welcome sessions that explain step-by-step what the [wellness] program is designed to do and how employees can maximize its value.” Illustrating the value of setting achievable goals will help “increase the likelihood staff will participate in and stick with the program.”
Offer easy access to wellness information. An organizational wellness program is only as effective as the number of participants involved. Recognizing that employees are often very busy, both with work responsibilities and personal obligations, it’s a good idea to provide healthy activities (workout sessions, group lunch wellness programs, etc.) at times of most convenience to your team. Schedule presentations and other events at multiple times and/or locations, so more employees can find time to attend.
Incorporate wellness into your onboarding process. By promoting employee wellness, you’re creating a powerful incentive with respect to recruitment and retention. Job candidates and employees alike appreciate when the businesses they work for place an emphasis on their mental and physical well-being. This approach can help attract new interest in working for your company and encouraging those already on board to stick with the organization.
There’s never been a better time to re-evaluate your employee wellness program or to adopt one in the coming weeks. Employees want to feel that the companies they work for are concerned about their well-being. Emphasizing health and wellness as part of company policy makes that commitment clear.
Brett Del Prince
Baillie Lumber
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