How to help employers face workplace health issues

Employee wellbeing – and more recently mental health in particular – has become a keen focal point for many businesses. To achieve a happy workforce and increased productivity, businesses must provide a welcoming, healthy and positive environment in which to work.

Yet with an array of wellbeing challenges still facing UK organisations, there is still much work to do. Too many workers feel stressed and overworked, often at the detriment of their health.

Employers must find ways to promote positive health and wellbeing within their organisation, while treading the fine line between enforcer and facilitator.

Best Doctors® – the second medical opinion service – recently interviewed me to get my thoughts on the top causes of negative workplace wellbeing, the challenges ahead and most importantly, the solutions.

What are the most challenging workplace health issues that employers currently face?

Mental health conditions are a growing concern for many companies, and their subjective nature can prove challenging for managers. The majority of these conditions are not initially clinical, but are related to issues such as performance management and over promotion.

It’s an issue that needs to be managed sensibly and sensitively because employers need to take the role of a facilitator rather than an enforcer

In response to this, Canada Life has launched Day One Access to a rehabilitation consultant which provides members with access to an experienced nurse through a simple phone call.

How have employer’s attitudes to workplace health changed (over the years)?

Following the introduction of Automatic Enrolment and Real Time information, health and wellbeing is the next item on employers’ to do lists. In addition, the UK Government’s focus on productivity means that workplace health is becoming a focus of attention across all levels.

The challenge that we face is a lack of tangible evidence based on long-term, statistically significant case studies which will encourage employers to further invest in health and wellbeing.

What about employees’ attitudes to their own health and wellbeing in the workplace?

Employers are aware that workplace health initiatives tend to be mainly of interest to the working well. The task they’re facing is how to reach and engage with the working, possibly unwell (either now or in the future).

It’s an issue that needs to be managed sensibly and sensitively because employers need to take the role of a facilitator rather than an enforcer. Wearable technology is valuable because it provides employees with the daily visibility that will encourage them to make behavioural changes.

Even I have started walking up the seven flights of office stairs each day once my phone showed me I was short of daily steps!

People are talking a lot about “Presenteeism” (working while ill or suffering from a medical condition, attending work but not adding genuine value, for example). In what ways does this issue differ in terms of the approach that employers need to take?

Simple, practical changes can be made to reduce presenteeism and increase productivity. For example work surveillance to ensure that holidays are being taken, and phased returns to work which can be coordinated in conjunction with the Group Income Protection team.

What are some of the most successful measures you have seen companies implement to address workplace health?

At Canada Life, it is our Group Income Protection schemes and Early Intervention Services. We see a reduction in the incidence and duration of absences and sick pay which also leads to an increase in the acceptance rate on Group Income Protection claims.

There is no additional charge for our Early Intervention Service on top of the Group Income Protection premium, so employers should ensure they take advantage of these benefits. As an example of what can be achieved we found 86 per cent of employees returned to work prior to a claim being made, which is a sensational result, as over 70 per cent of employers that engaged with early intervention had a reduction in their premiums as a result.

What innovations or phenomena in workplace health issues can we expect to see in the future?

People are focusing on wearable technology, but the starting point really has to be providing a business case for ROI (return on investment) by collecting data sets across all services, insurance and benefits.

Only then will we be able to target specific interventions and monitor their impact at a strategic healthcare level.

We need to work towards a reduction in short-term absence, group risk and private medical insurance claims and employer liability claims, while increasing employee satisfaction, productivity, and the use of highly valued employee benefits such as second medical opinion services like Best Doctors.

Best Doctors® is a registered trademark of Best Doctors Inc. in the United States and other countries. Used with permission.

Paul Avis is marketing director of Canada Life Group Insurance