WMCA and TheBusinessDesk.com come together to highlight Thrive at Work
There has never been a more critical time to re-energise your business and take care of your staff.
To market World Mental Health Day, West Midlands Combined Authority and TheBusinessDesk.com have joined forces to highlight the importance of wellbeing at work – and how the region’s businesses can support their staff.
In the first of a week-long series of articles, we urge you to join Thrive at Work, the free workplace wellbeing awards programme for the Midlands.
Your employees are your most valuable asset. They are responsible for delivering business goals. They are responsible for business growth.
Putting your employee’s needs front-and-centre helps to increase the bottom line of the business, which, during Covid-19, has never been more important.
Covid-19 is putting a huge pressure on businesses and employees alike. Businesses are having to resort to staff cuts to keep the business afloat. Employees have new working environments whilst taking on extra workloads. As a result of this, staff time is worth more, but employee wellbeing is at increased risk.
How can we support our workforce during Covid-19?
Poor mental health affects one in six people. A report from Deloitte suggests the cost of mental ill health to employers is up to £45 billion a year. As we move through 2020, it is no secret that mental wellbeing is becoming a wider social issue.
No business can hide from the economic impact caused by poor mental health of staff – the productivity loss as a result of presenteeism.
One solution that will help your business improve its bottom line, and keep staff happy, is investing into workplace wellbeing. The Thrive at Work foundation level has been introduced specifically to help businesses as a result of the pandemic.
Rachel Kearney from Moor Hall Hotel & Spa has benefited from implementing the workplace wellbeing programme Thrive at Work.
“Thrive at Work has been a huge success for us. Staff turnover and absence levels have reduced. Our employees are talking more, and we are confident that we can offer support to them if they need it.”
By investing in improving mental health, productivity levels increase, staff wellbeing improves, and your employees have another reason to stay. It’s a win-win for all.
How Thrive at Work works
At Thrive at Work, we understand mental health. We understand the effects of mental health on staff and how Covid-19 has made this issue worse. We understand the importance of solving these problems and we see the benefit to businesses who make change.
Thrive at Work has been created to meet differing business needs. We achieve this by guiding your business through a structured, thought-out and proven framework. It includes effective techniques that keep staff motivated and healthy.
The programme hits five themes that influence employee health and wellbeing:
- Enablers of health – looking at organisational leadership, policies and procedures
- Mental health – creating strategies to identify, prevent and self-manage wellbeing, including training and support
- Musculoskeletal – creating strategies to help self-management of physical wellbeing. For example, identifying how movement and posture can impact on physical health
- Lifestyles – tackling general wellbeing issues. For example, smoking, alcohol, substance use, weight management and physical activity
- External risks to health – consideration for the wider impacts on health. For example, financial pressures, domestic abuse and caring responsibilities.
By joining, your business works towards four levels of accreditation – foundation, bronze, silver and gold. The foundation level is a great place to start. It will give you a comprehensive understanding of your business and can be completed in only five steps.
Join a workplace wellbeing programme today. Free for all businesses in the Midlands.
Email: thriveatwork@wmca.org.uk
Phone: 0121 214 7861
