The Covid-19 outbreak changed a lot of things. One of its pivotal effects is how businesses started to shift from the office to a work-from-home format.
Some of us, especially online workers, have long adjusted to the nature of working from home. But for others, it is a significant transformation from the environment of an office. Instead of colleagues, you interact with your family and children. Instead of focusing solely on work, you have distractions now and then – from children looking for the missing pair of sock or the neighbor’s overly enthusiastic dog. In short, the global outbreak only increased the everyday stressors of workers.
This is why having a reliable employee wellness program covering physical and mental health is vital for companies shifting to remote work. Implementing it will not only promote a positive mindset – it will also improve employee productivity.
Here are some ideas that you can implement to foster the physical and mental wellbeing of your work-from-home employees:
1. Provide online counseling support.
Do not wait until your remote workers come to you complaining about how they are feeling extra exhausted and emotionally drained. Provide an option for your employees to talk to someone online if they are feeling stressed about their situation. A 24-hour support line service is ideal in circumstances like this. You can partner with organizations about this.
2. Create an environment that is open for discussion of mental illness.
Not all companies foster openness about mental illness. With the unusual situation that we are in right now, it’s the right time to project a different company image – one that cares not only about the physical health but also the mental wellbeing of employees. You can start by distributing infographics on wellness, fitness, nutrition, and coping with mental stress. You can also circulate materials encouraging openness about mental illness to remove office stigma on the matter. Build awareness and an awesome and supportive workplace culture.
3. Help your employees de-stress.
Regularly send links to meditation, yoga, and decompression activities. You can also set one day a week as a Health and Wellness Day, allowing 30 minutes of online de-stressing sessions. You can hire someone to lead the activity, or you can just find videos or applications online that can do the job.
4. Prepare a mental health toolkit.
A mental health toolkit contains resources, tools, and background to help you understand mental health problems and strengthen an open work environment for employees who are undergoing issues. There are available toolkits offered by companies. But you can also make your own by curating a list of resources for people suffering from these issues. You can include online links to employee assistance programs and referrals to online doctor Ontario clinics offering mental healthcare services.
5. Combat eye strain.
One effect of prolonged exposure to digital screens is eye strain. Once you get it, your work and productivity will be significantly affected. Send infographics or videos detailing simple exercises to avoid getting it. You can also encourage your remote employees to install applications or software that can help minimize eye strain. Examples of great tools are Time Out, which reminds you if it is time to take a break, or Flux, which adjusts the color of your screen depending on the time of the day.
6. Encourage an online community for employees.
Before the Covid-19 outbreak, your workers get to interact with each other in the office. Working from home is a significant change, especially to those who are used to socializing with their colleagues. To compensate, try establishing an online community where they can get to discuss hobbies, interests, and other life details they want to share. You can create channels through Slack or other team collaboration software. This little gesture can make a big difference in the environment of your remote workers.
7. Bring up online learning sessions.
There is always room for growth. The development of new skills can be a fun way for your work from home workers to de-stress and boost their personal development. Curate a list of online sessions that you can conduct to upskill your employees. You can do it at least once a month or if the need arises.
8. Promote healthy eating habits.
Institute Meatless Mondays to promote a plant-based diet. You can take advantage of your community forum or team collaboration channels to let them submit recipes and pictures of one of their healthy meals. Give incentives to employees who get the highest votes from among colleagues.
9. Start a fitness challenge.
Involve the whole office by holding a fitness challenge. Remember the 25 push-ups for 25 days challenge for PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) awareness? You can create a similar one in the office. One idea is initiating 30 squats for 30 days for a Mental Health Awareness challenge. With this, you will be promoting both the physical and mental wellness of your remote employees.
10. Hear your employees.
Survey to find out if your program is working or not. Is your activity engaging and helpful for your employees? Do they have any preferences or suggestions? The best people who can answer those questions are your workers.
Let your company create a positive impact on your workers – whether they report to the office or do their jobs at home. A great company culture stems from genuine compassion. Take that first step by initiating wellness programs this year.