Company Feature: Promoting Workplace Wellness
By Katie Foley
Introduction
As a parent to school-aged children, September always feel like a fresh start with a new school year starting. Similar to how we often assess our diet and exercise habits in January with the new year and new year's resolutions, autumn is a great time to look at our workplace wellness habits. The change from summer to fall can often feel unsettling, but hopefully implementing a healthy office routine as outlined below can ease the adjustment period.
Why Workplace Wellness Matters
The term workplace wellness often refers to the corporate policies in place to promote health and wellness in the workplace. This blog will refer to these corporate policies as well as small habits you can carry from work into your personal life that will improve your overall wellbeing.
So why does 'workplace wellness' matter? Well, because a full-time employee spends ~40 hours per week engaged in his or her job, which means an average employee is at work 2,080 hours per year. Here are just a few of the reasons healthy habits in the workplace matter:
- Enhances employee health, including reduced chronic illness and reduced stress levels
- Improves focus, productivity, and performance
- Reduces healthcare costs
- Attracts talent by improving employee morale and contributing to positive company culture
- Encourages healthy work-life balance
Now that we know some of the motivation behind wellness in the workplace, keep reading for some strategies to help implement in your workplace and in your personal life.
Workplace Wellness Strategies to Implement
Here are some ideas for how employers and employees can foster a healthy and happy workplace:
Nutrition
- When snacks or meals are ordered in, employers should make an effort to offer healthy options.
- Make packing a lunch from home fun by offering a comfortable kitchen/cafeteria space for employees to gather and enjoy a healthy meal together.
- Instead of the usual happy hour, schedule a lunch-and-learn with a wellness focus or bring the team to a group yoga class or healthy cooking class for team building.
Movement
- Offer employees access to fitness equipment. This could be through a discounted gym membership located close to the office or through offering on-site gym equipment for employees to use.
- Encourage employees to take movement breaks during the work day. This could look like taking an outdoor walk after lunch, scheduling a walking meeting with a colleague, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, or setting a reminder on your phone to do 10 body weight squats at your desk every 30-60 minutes. Little changes add up to big results!
- Invest in standing desks and ergonomic chairs for employees to encourage movement and better posture.
Stress Management
- Promote a corporate culture of healthy work-life balance. As long as employees are being productive, offering remote work options or flexibility with hours can help employees balance personal and professional time. Encourage employees to take vacation days to avoid burnout.
- Make time for a mindfulness practice. This could mean listening to a 5 minute meditation through an app on your phone or practicing breath work (try box breathing or 4-7-8 breathing) at your desk for a few minutes. Set a reminder on your phone to make this a daily habit.
Conclusion
Visibility cares deeply about the health and wellness of its team, which is why we have implemented many of these initiatives listed above and continue to look for ways to keep our employees healthy and happy in the workplace and beyond. Interested in joining our team? Learn more about careers at Visibility here.
Want to know another great way to stay well in the workplace? Getting offsite and engaging in networking and educational sessions in the beautiful Florida sunshine. Register for VCC 2025 today and meet us in Singer Island, Florida this May.
