{"id":16176,"date":"2021-06-14T12:08:43","date_gmt":"2021-06-14T09:08:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.talentlms.com\/blog\/?p=16176"},"modified":"2023-11-07T13:43:45","modified_gmt":"2023-11-07T11:43:45","slug":"well-being-at-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.talentlms.com\/blog\/well-being-at-work\/","title":{"rendered":"Workplace well-being ideas: 23 companies share their mental health initiatives"},"content":{"rendered":"

One day in 2020, a company asked its employees to not show up in the office the next day, and, instead, work from home for \u201cas long as it takes.<\/em>\u201d Little did they know it would take them months to return to the office \u2014 if ever. And business would never be \u201cas usual.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

Employee burnout, low morale, work-life (im)balance. These were not just buzzwords anymore.<\/strong> And well-being at work was no more a nice-to-have or a perk to promote your open roles.<\/p>\n

The recent pandemic has taken an emotional toll on employees. With mandated lockdowns and nowhere to go, people ended up working long hours. At the same time, they were struggling to juggle between work and home life. The overall stress, a result of this healthcare crisis, has a long-term impact on their mental health, too.<\/p>\n

Luckily, many companies have taken note and introduced initiatives to take care of their people. But also to remind employees to take care of themselves<\/strong>. Because mental health impacts us in all aspects of our lives. Employees, now more than ever, expect to find well-being at work.<\/p>\n

A recent study<\/a><\/strong> on remote work and employee wellness from Virtual Vocations found that 77.64% of respondents feel that overall health, including mental and physical health, is extremely important to work success. Plus, more than 42% consider access to fitness classes, like yoga and Pilates, their most desired employer-provided wellness benefit. However, only 5.65% said their current employers offer access to such benefits<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

This is a good starting point if you\u2019re thinking about introducing some employee well-being benefits. But it\u2019s not the only way to go. Twenty-three companies are sharing how they promote well-being at work<\/strong> and what kind of initiatives they\u2019ve taken to battle mental health issues, especially amid the pandemic.<\/p>\n

Mental health: Let\u2019s call it by its name<\/h2>\n

What\u2019s the first thing that comes to mind when hearing the phrase \u201cemployee well-being<\/em>\u201d? Flexible working hours? Yoga sessions? A relaxing work environment with ping pong tables? This is all fair game. But if we really<\/em> want to invest in and support employees\u2019 mental health, we need to take more decisive measures.<\/p>\n

First, we shouldn\u2019t sugarcoat mental health issues<\/strong>. Terms like \u201cworkplace happiness\u201d don\u2019t necessarily represent employees\u2019 needs. If we truly want to help our people, we need to recognize \u2014 and help them<\/em> recognize, as well \u2014 their real struggles, e.g., burnout or low morale.<\/p>\n

Secondly, we should help them battle these issues. And this is where HR can make a difference. Christina Gialleli, People Operations Director at Epignosis<\/a><\/strong>, explains how they decided to invest in workplace wellness benefits.<\/p>\n

\u201cParticularly during the second wave of the pandemic, we noticed that people were stressed over various things \u2014 it didn’t necessarily have to do with their work or productivity. We knew that sharing tips on how to effectively work from home or sending reminders to go for a walk and take some fresh air, wouldn\u2019t cut it.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

Christina says it was clear they needed to do something more impactful<\/strong>, something that would boost people\u2019s mental health. And that’s when the idea of offering access to a consulting phone line where employees can seek advice and support from qualified psychologists came up:<\/p>\n

\u201cWe wanted to offer our people the option to seek psychological support, even if they weren\u2019t ready or didn\u2019t need to go to therapy. The consulting phone line lets<\/strong> people choose when and how frequently they\u2019ll discuss issues they\u2019re facing.<\/em>\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Tom Winter, HR Tech Recruitment Advisor & Co-founder of DevSkiller<\/a><\/strong>, also highlights it’s important to take care of not just your physical but your mental health, too. That\u2019s why, ever since the pandemic outbreak, they let their employees take some days off whenever they feel physically or mentally fatigued, so they can avoid burnout in the future<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\u201cEmployees are returning much more enthusiastic and willing to openly speak about their mental health, which has resulted in a much healthier work environment,<\/em>\u201d Tom says.<\/p>\n

Along the same lines, Absolute Digital Media<\/strong><\/a> has introduced three extra wellness days off<\/strong> per year. If a team member is feeling demotivated or needs some extra time to recharge, they can take a wellness day to prioritize mental health.<\/p>\n

For Zo\u00eb Morris, President at Nelson Frank<\/strong><\/a>, well-being at work is not a one-off event. Every Wednesday, employees are asked to close their laptops an hour early and do something for themselves. Whether that\u2019s spending time with a book, their family, or heading out for a run, the time is theirs to do whatever makes them happy.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Well-being Wednesday<\/strong>] has been one of the most popular benefits we\u2019ve introduced to the company and has gone from a lockdown experiment to help people switch off when working from home, to a permanent fixture that will remain in place going forward. Happier, relaxed people make better, focused employees, so it\u2019s no surprise to us that it\u2019s resulted in a far more engaged workforce.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2026 but remove the stigma<\/h2>\n

While it\u2019s important to steer away from a \u201ctoxic positivity\u201d mentality, it\u2019s equally important to understand that people aren\u2019t always comfortable sharing their mental health struggles. Especially in a work environment. For example, employees may worry that disclosing they\u2019re experiencing burnout, could have a negative impact on their job.<\/p>\n

This is why it’s important to create a safe space where no one is stigmatized. At Asana<\/strong><\/a>, wellness benefits are intentionally designed to support people in whatever ways they need, through awareness, healthy practices, skill-building, and 1:1 and group support.<\/p>\n

“Our Real Talk event series<\/strong> encourages authentic discussions on issues that are important to various communities. These are conversations where we create safe spaces to be open, honest, and authentic, while sharing experiences, sparking moments of insight, listening, and reflecting,<\/em>” Jennifer Shenker, Head of People Rewards, Analytics and Operations, says.<\/p>\n

“At Asana, we truly believe in helping people thrive, and part of thriving is supporting mental well-being.<\/em>”<\/p>\n

And they’ve truly adopted this mindset by introducing Thrive; a safe, stigma-free space<\/strong> where Asanas can share thoughts, feelings, experiences, and resources related to mental health and well-being. Through this internal community, employees navigate their own mental health, as well as create allies supporting others with their mental health.<\/p>\n

It’s also important for senior management to step in and help remove the stigma from mental health issues at work. Exactly what Alex Iwanchuk, Co-founder of Feals<\/strong><\/a>, is trying to achieve. \u201cWhen I need a mental health day, I take the time \u2014 and I let my team know. When that comes from the top [of an organization], you can see the ripple effect. It\u2019s really about leading by example<\/strong> and sharing experiences.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

Alex notes<\/strong><\/a> that team members have started opening up about their well-being-related needs, and, as a result, everyone supports and empowers each other.<\/p>\n

Another example comes from PrizeRebel<\/strong><\/a>. Jerry Han, the company\u2019s CMO, explains that anyone on the team can take \u201cMe days<\/strong>\u201d whenever they feel the need to take a day off to work on their well-being and improve their mental health. \u201cThere doesn\u2019t need to be an explanation of why a \u201cMe day\u201d is needed and is not counted from sick days or vacation days,<\/em>\u201d Jerry adds.<\/p>\n

Sonya Schwartz, Founder of Her Norm<\/strong><\/a>, reminds us of another reason why people may hesitate to seek help when it comes to their well-being. \u201cA consultation with a mental health expert is often costly.<\/em>\u201d To encourage employees to discuss and overcome their mental health issues, Sonya has included mental health consultations in insurance packages<\/strong>. Mental health should no longer be taboo \u2014 it\u2019s a way to take care of yourself as a whole.<\/p>\n

\"Employee<\/p>\n

\u201cMens sana in corpore sano\u201d<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s been known for hundreds and hundreds of years: \u201cA healthy mind in a healthy body.<\/em>\u201d Many companies have adopted this mindset, offering virtual fitness classes during the pandemic to improve employee well-being.<\/p>\n

But how do employees respond?<\/p>\n

Thomas Fultz, Owner at Coffeeble<\/strong><\/a>, describes how meditation has helped the team during these times. They started with a 30-day program through the Calm app and continued with a daily 30-minute break for meditation and self-care. In fact, this initiative helped so much, that Thomas is in the process of hiring a wellness coach<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

At WritingUniverse<\/strong><\/a>, employees are encouraged to participate in fitness activities, like yoga and walking challenges, by getting rewards. \u201cWe noticed that adding an element of competition<\/strong> made employees more interested in the initiatives. They were better able to manage their work\/life balance and we had fewer cases of burnout and a decrease in absenteeism,<\/em>\u201d Mark Blackwood, HR Manager, explains.<\/p>\n

Online fitness classes have an indirect impact on employee well-being, too; it\u2019s a chance to meet and bond with your colleagues, even from afar. This is why Ouriel Lemmel, CEO and Founder of WinIt<\/strong><\/a>, has decided to stay at the Zoom meeting for another 20 minutes after their online yoga class, just in case anyone wants to chat.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want this post-workout time to have the same feeling as chatting after a workout class in person. It isn\u2019t time to talk about work<\/strong>, just time for those who want to hang out and get to know each other. It can be especially hard in a remote work environment to have a pulse on how my employees are doing and having this chat after a yoga class has made all the difference.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

Well-being at work doesn\u2019t come naturally; we need to learn \u201chow to\u201d<\/h2>\n

Just because terms like \u201cwell-being\u201d and \u201cmental health\u201d are so popular these days, doesn\u2019t mean we\u2019re all supposed to know what to do. Luckily, there are plenty of training resources or apps and ready-made courses that can benefit both employers and employees.<\/p>\n

Employees at QuizBreaker<\/strong><\/a>, for example, get access to a variety of in-person and online classes<\/strong>, ranging in topics from fitness to cooking and diet\/nutrition. While Dentaly<\/strong><\/a> has created a mental health toolkit<\/strong> that includes a curated list of online resources and links to support groups and employee assistance programs.<\/p>\n

At Asana<\/strong><\/a>, every new employee goes through Conscious Leadership (CLG) training<\/strong>. CLG offers frameworks, concepts, language, and practices to get unstuck from unhelpful mindsets and move through conflict. It\u2019s all about mindfully transforming emotions, thoughts, and communication styles to enable self-awareness, self-acceptance, and greater, authentic connections with one another. Employees get also six executive coaching sessions<\/strong> per year so they work on professional effectiveness, broader well-being, and personal development.<\/p>\n

Ian Sells, founder and CEO of RebateKey<\/strong><\/a>, took the initiative of organizing group sessions on several topics, like coping strategies, mindfulness, and so on. \u201cWe held classes like this to ensure that our employees’ mental health is kept in check. Employees say that these programs helped them not only with work but with life in general<\/strong>,<\/em>\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n

MaryBeth Hyland, Founder & Chief Visionary of SparkVision<\/strong><\/a>, describes how \u201cMindful Minutes<\/strong>\u201d, sessions, work: \u201cWe offer twice-weekly, 15-minute live mindfulness coaching sessions that take one tip or practice to put into action in real-time. They range from guided meditations, breathwork, boundary setting, mindset, and values-alignment. By making the sessions short and direct, we’ve been able to provided participants with dynamic new tools to support their well-being.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

Among other initiatives, two employees at SoftwareKeep<\/strong><\/a> are currently taking different mental health paid courses<\/strong>. According to CEO Ronnie Teja, once they’re done with learning, they expect to create a team that can look after each other.<\/p>\n

If you’re thinking to offer mental health training to your teams but don’t know where to start from, a good place is an online library with ready-made resources and courses. TalentLibrary™, for example, has an entire collection of courses on well-being and mental health<\/strong><\/a>, from eating healthily and dealing with stress to understanding emotions and kicking bad habits.<\/p>\n

Gina Lionatos, Brand Marketing Manager at TalentLMS, shares below some quick tips on how to create a mindfulness training program<\/strong>\u2014whether it’s for individuals or teams:<\/p>\n

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