Guide for HR on Designing Wellness Program

Designing Holistic Wellness Program

A holistic wellness program refers to better health and well-being beyond the physical need of the employees. Providing better wellness programs has become a priority for the HR departments. As per a survey conducted by Gallagher benefit services, 27% of the wellness programs offer community services, 34% of wellness programs include financial counseling and 28% offer volunteer opportunities.

Categories of Employee Wellness Program

It is suggested to the HR department to think broadly about the employee wellness program to have a better approach. National wellness institutes have jotted down the wellness program into 6 categories: Physical, intellectual, emotional, social, occupational, and spiritual.

Since the pandemic caused some drastic changes, it became a priority for the HR department to create a better wellness program so that the employees can benefit as much as possible.

Components of Wellness Program

Here are some of the components of the holistic wellness program and HR can include:

• Nutrition education: Under this component, the employees are educated about having better nutrition so stay healthy and fit.
• Stress buster program: Under this component, HR conducts stress-busting sessions to lighten up the mood of the employees
• Physical activities: Under this component, HR conducts physical activity program in which employees can participate voluntarily.
• Mental health wellness program: Under this component, HR conducts sessions in which employees can join and be educated about the importance of better mental health and how to achieve it.
• Promoting employee social interaction: Under this component, HR promotes the benefits of social interaction among employees.
• Weight loss program: Under this component, HR conducts a program that employees with heavyweight can join and work on themselves to lose some weight.

Wellness Program Examples

A well-rounded approach to creating a wellness program can address several aspects. It helps HR to understand and be creative with the type of benefits they can provide to the employees according to the needs of the workforce. Here are some examples:

Encourage Time off

Usually, employees do not take the leaves they are entitled to as they believe that it will make them look like hardworking employees who will eventually help them get a promotion. However, if HR can encourage the employees to take a break from work every now and then to relax then it can be beneficial for the employees as well as the company.

Taking a break every now and then from work can boost the mental health of the employees and eventually it will reflect in their work as well and it will be beneficial for the company in the long run.

Remote Working

With the advancement in technology, it has become possible for employees to work remotely. After the outbreak of covid-19, employees were sent to work from home. Now after 4 long years, employees became habitual of working from their homes and when employers asked them to come back to the office, many employees started looking for jobs in companies where they could get work from home.

Since working from home becomes a trend, it is suggested to employers be open to the remote working culture. They can either opt the hybrid working and if possible then they can ask their employees to work from home permanently if their daily tasks do not involve any offline work.

Conclusion

Everything is evolving with time and employers need to accept the changes and evolve with them. They must understand the changes they have to make in their company for the betterment of the employee's health and help them to maintain a good work-life balance. Creating a holistic wellness program can help them do so.