It almost goes without saying that happy employees, make for an all-round happier place to work and who doesn’t want that? In almost every industry, recent years and even more-so now with the return to work following the global pandemic, has seen an ever-growing focus on employee health and wellbeing.
Such a focus is being driven by a continuous stream of insightful research demonstrating the true value in making employee health a priority.
Here, we’ve dug out some key findings and at times surprising statistics, that emphasize the cost of ignoring employee health.
Latest Employee Wellbeing Statistics
1. 56.4% of employees suffer work-related stress
(Latest findings from Britain’s Healthiest Workplace).
A stark warning of the direct impact of a workplace on an employees feelings of stress.
2. 2.10% increase in the proportion of NHS staff in England reporting feeling unwell as a result of work-related stress
(Health Service’s 2020 survey published Mar 2021 from The Guardian).
Although this particular statistic is based on research specifically within the NHS, it highlights the impact on employee wellbeing on those who have faced added pressures from the pandemic, something a huge proportion of other industries will relate to.
3. 87% of employees expect their employer to support them in balancing work and personal commitments
(Forbes, 2019, siting a survey by Glassdoor).
Already a huge figure, but one which has likely continued to rise following the pandemic. It highlights the long-standing recognition of the importance in a healthy work-life balance but in a way that puts a large emphasis on the employer, not just the employee in making the balance possible.
4. Majority of employees felt company’s culture has been more accepting of mental health challenges in the past year
(CNN business, July 2021 reporting a survey of 1005 employees by The Harford).
This finding shows promise of what is already being achieved thanks to the rise in focus on health and wellbeing in the workplace and by making mental health less of a taboo subject.
5. 61% of employees made healthier lifestyle choices because of company’s wellness programme
(Aflac, 2017).
Flip this on its head and you realise that could be 61% of employees missing out on healthier lifestyle choices due to a lack of wellbeing support within a company. Whilst an older study, it demonstrates how the workplace can empower employees to live healthier and happier lives.
6. Saddest January in the last ten years
(Champion Health siting data from the UK’s Office of National Statistics, 2021).
An unfortunate reality according to ONS and all the more reason to ensure we do more to support employees given so many have found the past 16 months a real challenge.
7. 63% of individuals experienced at least mild symptoms of anxiety
(Champion Health, 2020).
Anxiety can have a profound impact on how we perform at work and in more serious cases whether we even turn up to work in the first place.
8. 1 in 4 employees reporting symptoms of depression that were moderate to severe
(Champion Health, 2020).
Another stark statistic that reminds us how important it is to address employee health and wellbeing in the workplace.
9. Medical-claim cost savings from wellness program of $3.6million
(Merrill, R.M and LeCheminant, James D, 2016).
This study investigated the difference between medical claim costs of employees who partipated in the WellSteps wellness program at a large school district compared to those that didn’t. It highlights what many other studies have done on the positive impact of wellness programs and quite literally the cost incurred when we ignore employee health and wellbeing.
Bottom Line
Frankly, the list of statistics on employee health is endless. Whilst it may seem all doom and gloom it is important to use the growing understanding of mental health and wellbeing to empower change for the greater good.
With wellbeing programs being incorporated into business’ at a rapid rate, more and more is being discovered about the positive impact they can have not only on employee health and happiness, but also on the productivity and profitability for business’. An all-round win-win situation!
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