Guardian Angels? Guardian Reports on Wellbeing Initiatives at Work

We promoted a fascinating piece of news we read in The Guardian recently about wellbeing initiatives and how these are being implemented at work by real companies.

As we’ve reported on, wellbeing is at the forefront of corporate and HR practices and budgets and with the beneficial effects speaking for themselves, wellbeing at work really is a zeitgeist of sorts with plenty of media coverage speaking of various initiatives and programs.

Thinking Outside the Box

The article had some fantastic examples of how companies are using new and innovative ways to invest in their worker’s health which we’ve summarised below:

– Williamson: Brought in a free, weekly fitness session called the “Swoon Sweater”, PLUS offered free gym membership for all their workers. The cost is around £10,000 per year… but the business owner is delighted. Morale has increased and working relationships have solidified as colleagues can hang out away from the office.
– Crunch Accounting: This firm offered free breakfasts to stop workers eating lunch at their desk and encourage them to get out and about. The cost is around £200 per month, but the benefits vastly outweigh it, and productivity has increased.

Reducing Workers Stress

In addition to these ideas being nice add-ons to existing HR policy, there are increasing numbers of those who believe they are not only a luxury, but a necessary step. Preventing stress has become crucial, perhaps in part due to the fact that fighting it has become more expensive. Not only do high stress levels affect productivity – although some stress can be beneficial – the effect on physical and mental health, and the subsequent cost to businesses has spiralled, placing it at the fore of business targets and media attention.

Occupational Physiotherapy In-house Clinics

That leads us nicely on to ourselves! In-house occupational physiotherapy clinics are another, highly effective way to increase worker productivity. Additionally, they pay for themselves in abundance as sick leave is vastly diminished when preventative measures such as physiotherapy are in place to alleviate any existing and eliminate any anticipated back pain for workers.

Learn more about our clinics here.