There is a lot of talk these days in relation to if businesses have a responsibility in identifying poor health habits in their workforce and therefore can facilitating a healthy workplace help minimise related issues. Numerous studies tell businesses that invest in the employees’ health and wellbeing will have a healthier, happier, more engaged and productive workforce. Reducing business costs of employee absences, presenteeism and injury can become a focus however there are other benefits. A Comcare report commences “Strong evidence shows that good employee health and wellbeing boosts organisational health.” Ok, sounds great yet what are signs of an unhealthy workplace and what can be done to address.
Workplace Health – Below are some signs that may indicate your workplace is an unhealthy one:
- Excessive or Routine Sick/Personal Leave Days – Records show that Australian Businesses with unhealthy staff members are 2.5 times more likely to have issues with higher rate of absenteeism. Considering a recent “Get Healthy at Work” study, small to medium business over a five year period are likely to incur greater running cost, that sit close to 50,000 more than their counterparts.
- A Workforce That Have An Inherently Sedentary Role – If your workforce are not prompted to move incidentally throughout the day, The chances of them being unhealthy and exhibiting unhealthy behaviours are substantially higher. This inactivity flows into the way in which they commute to and from work. Levels of regular inactivity can lead to obesity, chronic diseases and illnesses and this will affect their happiness, productivity and attendance at work.
- Staff That Are Overworked or Overstressed – Get Healthy At work studies identified that 64% of businesses that are experiencing high levels of absenteeism receive direct feedback from staff that they are not coping with the stress and strains of their job. This leads to ongoing absenteeism, decreased levels of job satisfaction and lower staff retention rates within the workplace.
A Workplace Health Check performed by our experienced consultants/clinicians will help identify risks and modify employee health and behaviours. Alternatively implementing a targetted Work Health Program.
Contact us to discuss