Better productivity, lower absenteeism, and higher morale are just a few of the advantages of having a healthy workplace. Creating a healthy work atmosphere, on the other hand, is easier said than done. What exactly constitutes a healthy workplace? And do you need to consider anything else than your working environment? This essay will describe a healthy workplace and discuss its advantages for you, your team, and your business. We'll also look at simple, low-cost ways for improving the working environment of your team. Then, you can find out how you can improve to make your workplace happier and healthier.
1. What is a "Healthy Workplace"?
Leading occupational health experts S. Lim and L. R. Murphy (1999) define a healthy workplace as "one whose culture, climate, and organizational practices create an environment that promotes employees' mental and physical health, as well as productivity and organizational effectiveness." As a result, building a healthy workplace entails more than just providing safe, well-maintained physical settings.
A healthy work environment offers several advantages. It can, for example:
Boost morale and work satisfaction.
Improve your performance and productivity.
Help to improve employer-employee relationships.
Reduce absenteeism, sick leave, and medical expenditures.
Furthermore, having a healthy workplace helps you attract new recruits and keep your finest employees.
2. What makes your workplace happier and healthier?
2.1. The physical environment
Building a healthy and safe environment goes beyond the obvious aspects like cleanliness and order; it also includes building an atmosphere that encourages your team's emotional health as well as their physical well-being.
Begin by taking a thorough stroll around your office. Is this an encouraging and stimulating environment, or is it drab and uncomfortable? Is the weather too hot or too cold? Make a list of changes that will make your office a more pleasant and energetic place to work.
Ask team members for their thoughts and suggestions. Think about repainting your department with bright, energizing colors. (Again, ask your team for suggestions.) You could add plants – which improve air quality and bring something of the outdoors inside – and allow people to customize their own work areas.
You can also increase air quality by keeping workspaces well-ventilated, by only using air conditioning when you have to, and by making sure that you have heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems serviced regularly. An air purification or filter system may also help.
2.2. Employee growth and development
Most of us desire to continue learning and improving our talents throughout our lives. The more you can assist individuals in doing this, the happier and more productive they will be.
You may get started by completing our How Well Do You Develop Your People? questionnaire. This helps you understand your views about team development and examine how you may increase the performance of your staff via suitable training and development.
2.3. Recognition
Everyone wants and enjoys being recognized for their hard work. So it should come as no surprise that offering and receiving adequate praise is a crucial element of building a healthy workplace.
Do the following to show your appreciation for your employees:
Make it a habit to reward your employees on a regular basis. Never underestimate the value of a simple "thank you" for a job well done.
Although you may not have influence over your team's remuneration, do everything you can to guarantee that your employees receive fair and worthwhile compensation packages.
Walking about allows you to practice managing. As you do so, check in with each member of your team. Encourage them or make a brief "job well done" comment on a recent success.
2.4. Employee involvement
Employee involvement programs have been proven to increase staff morale and loyalty, as well as increase productivity. Your team needs a certain level of job autonomy to feel good about what they're doing. Remember that the freedom to make decisions is often cited as a key factor in achieving job satisfaction.
2.5. Life balance
People have a variety of reasons throughout life. Some people are ambitious and want to succeed, and they are willing to work long hours to do so. Others may wish to spend as much time as they can with their friends and family. And we're all capable of feeling pressured, exhausted, or overburdened from time to time.
3. Some tips to make a healthy workplace
3.1. The balance between work and life should be a priority
The concept of work/life balance is a priority for many workplaces recently. Every employee who is working for your company needs to have a clear understanding that you value them as loyal employees and as a person who has a life outside of work that is just as important as their work.
As an employer, you can make your employees happier and help their work/life healthier by offering work-from-home Fridays, unlimited vacation days, discounts on surrounding health and wellness programs, or childcare options (especially for women who have young children). Offering incentives that improve a team member’s overall quality of life is the best way to show that you care about their well-being.
3.2. Have meaningful conversations with everyone who works for you
But this one should come naturally, and you shouldn’t force your employees to have a conversation with you. And many managers don’t see the value because they are afraid of “crossing the line” into unprofessional territory. But that is not true, getting to know your employee is one of the best things to do to create a happy culture and a happy workplace.
To ensure these positive activities are long-lived, practice them daily, and remind your team often that they are an integral part of the company.
3.3. Make your employee can feel fulfilled in their roles
As a human, we all want to feel like what we are doing matters, including you – as an employer and your worker, if not, there are so many negative impacts that can happen to your workplace.
To make every person feel good about the role they are doing, they need to fully understand the company’s mission and purpose. So, to make the workplace healthier and happier, letting them feel fulfilled is a must.
Give a rundown of what each team or department does and why they do it. When employees see the inner workings of the organization from all angles and perspectives, the connection between each individual is stronger and therefore will improve productivity and have more success in their role.
Another great way to make work fulfilling is to get your team members involved in partnering with a local charity. Giving back to the community opens team members’ eyes to realizing work for the greater good is really what it’s all about.
3.4. Happy personalities should be a great plus during the interview
A happy work environment attracts good people and promotes a culture of productivity and accountability. And on the other hand, a stressful environment will most definitely destroy your company culture and also decrease your employee productivity.
So, it’s important to create and maintain a happy workplace to attract a person. That brings laughter to the workplace and makes the workplace healthier, happier to bring motivation and improve productivity for the whole company.
3.5. Make time for physical exercise
Physical exercise can work wonders for both the mind and body, especially in the modern workplace, where we sit almost all-time at the office. Most professionals say that staying active during the week can improve both performance and well-being while also bringing people together within the office.
As an employer, you can hire a workplace wellness program. Nowadays, there are so many companies that bring workouts to the workplace. They also do all the planning from finding trainers to getting equipment and setting a schedule.
3.6. Have clear policies and rules
Employees will feel more at ease if the workplace has well-established norms. When policies are explicit, employees understand how they should behave in the company and what is unacceptable conduct.
Clear policies enable management to hold employees accountable in a consistent and effective manner. Punishing workers for an activity that they were unaware was against the business policy is tough and ethically complex.
Policies should be established in basic, unambiguous language and copies should be freely available to all workers to guarantee a clear grasp of corporate standards.
Of course, clear policies are only successful if they are regularly implemented.
Because consistency is the cornerstone of justice, it is one of the most crucial characteristics of a good work environment. If some employees are held accountable for their conduct while others are not, your staff will notice. And morale is bound to suffer in a company when standards are inconsistently or selectively enforced.
Summary
People spend about a third of their lives working so it’s vital that they feel comfortable and at ease at work. So, the employer needs to make a healthier and happier workplace, where your employee is fulfilled, encouraged, and improves productivity in their role.
Source: Internet
Comments