Workplace Wellness:
a bottom-line value for companies and employees.
According to the 2008 Desjardins Financial Security Health Survey, fully 89 per cent of Canadians think the incidence of stress-related mental health issues is increasing. They’re right.
Psychologist Steven Stein, author of Make Your Workplace Great: The 7 Keys to an Emotionally Intelligent Organization, and founder and CEO of Multi-Health Systems Inc., says, “We find that the stress level on people in organizations is increasing.”
According to studies carried out by Multi-Health Systems, Dr. Stein says, “We’ve found that 50 per cent of working people in Canada report that stress is interfering with their work. We’re seeing the blurring in the lines between work and life. With the use of Blackberrys, iPhones and other modern technologies, people are taking work with them, throughout the day, throughout the evening and into the weekends.”
What that means, he says, is that stress is a productivity issue as well as a health issue.
Yet, the costs of stress are far greater than the economic value of lost productivity, says Taylor Alexander, CEO of the Canadian Mental Health Association. “A healthy work-life balance is critical not only to the individual worker’s ability to be productive, their own sense of well-being, but also to the bottom line for employers,” he says. “Research shows that depression and mental health problems cost the Canadian economy $51 billion each year. Disability claims for mental health are the fastest growing area of claims in the workforce today.”
According to the 2008 Desjardins Financial Security Health Survey, people are experiencing low-level burnout – ‘presenteeism.’ “They’re working, but are not as productive as they could be,” says Michele Nowski, director of disability claims and disability management, Desjardin Financial Security. “Eighty-three per cent of survey respondents told us they’re showing up for work sick and feeling exhausted. They have deadlines; they don’t want their work to pile up while they’re away and they don’t want to overload their colleagues,” says Ms. Nowski.
The critical goal for both employers and employees, then, is to achieve a healthy degree of work-life balance. Ms. Nowski sees the roles that both employers and employees have to making sure this happens. “The first thing employers need to do is look at their technology and their processes to ensure they are streamlined and efficient. Are they providing their employees with all the tools and training they need in order to do their jobs? Are they empowering employees to have the flexibility and make the decisions they need to do their jobs? After that, the rest is up to the employee."
For employees, an essential antidote is committing time out of the day to care for yourself, says Dr. Alexander. “There are a variety of things people can do to maintain that balance, such as exercising, eating well, taking up a hobby, spending time with friends – activities that replenish us and help us recover from the demands of the work-a-day world and the pressures we’re experiencing in our everyday lives.”
An important part of the solution to the untenable level of stress Canadian workers are experiencing, says Dr. Stein, is an agreement between employee and employer about the boundaries of work. “We’re at the point now where people have to really designate family time. They have to designate dinner time.”
“What I often recommend is that people also have BlackBerry time; once every two or three or four or five hours, you check your BlackBerry. Even in the office, people need more uninterrupted time in order to be effective in their work.”
Managers at the best workplaces go to great lengths to ensure that employees’ work environments are safe and healthy, both physically and psychologically,” says Jen Wetherow, CEO of Best Place to Work Institute. “Often, this includes providing support for employees to balance the demands of work and home life.”
Far from being just a feel-good endeavour, research has proven that investing in employee well-being contributes significantly to the bottom line. “By treating people right, companies often experience lower rates of turnover and higher levels of trust among managers and employees,” says Ms. Wetherow. “At caring companies, managers show a sincere interest in people, asking questions about their lives outside work not because they have to, but because they care. Employees at caring companies bring all of their gifts to the workplace, focus more on their work responsibilities and are more willing to go the extra mile.”
Are you in balance? Try Desjardins' Work-life balance evaluator online at dsf-dfs.com. (Click on ‘Individual,’ ‘Resources’ and ‘Health is Cool’ for the work-life balance evaluator and wellness toolkit.
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