Three High-Impact Wellbeing Strategies for 2021

Highlighting the Top Three Wellbeing Strategies to Consider in a COVID Environment

Organizations and employees face continued uncertainty from the pandemic, social justice issues and the political landscape. The workforce landscape has changed dramatically. In this ever-changing environment reviewing and updating your mental health and wellbeing strategic plan will be vital to keep your organization ready to meet the needs of your employees now and into the future. Focus on these most impactful strategies for 2021.

Implement or Update your Strategy to Address Mental Wellbeing

Seventy percent of employees report being more stressed than at any time in their professional career due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a survey conducted by mental health provider, Ginger. Not only has the pandemic had a critical impact on employee health, it’s also heavily impacting productivity. Between 32-62% of employees in the same survey reported at least one to two hours of lost productivity due to stress. Mental health support should be a top priority for your program in 2021 and into the future. Take these actions to support your employee’s mental health.

• Mental health training for managers
• Survey employees (ask how they are doing and listen, take action!)
• Break the stigma surrounding mental health
• Communicate resources and fill in gaps;
  • Virtual behavioral health
  • Robust EAP
  • Stress management and mindfulness tools
  • Resilience training

Encourage Preventive Health Visits

Preventive health visits declined dramatically when the pandemic hit. Adult and pediatric visits, including immunizations, were extremely low in April-June of this year due to the understandable fear of transmission. That doesn’t mean people didn’t have issues and high-risk events; it just means they were not seeking care. This has potential implications for long-term health.

Preventive care is essential, and the healthcare community is addressing COVID-19 concerns. It will be important to encourage preventive care and not to put their health on hold.

• Have a preventive health campaign
• Consider an incentive for getting an annual physical (work with your OneDigital team to design your incentive strategy)
• Give employees time off for a preventive visit

Revise your Strategy to Engage a Remote Workforce

The pandemic has forever changed the workforce landscape. Even as some employers are back at work, others are transitioning to remote work for the foreseeable future or partial remote work flexibility moving forward. While the pandemic accelerated an already growing trend, there is a concern that engagement and collaboration may suffer. Consider adding the tips below to your strategic plan in 2021.

• Update your communication strategy, tools, and frequency
• Check-in with employees on a personal level
• Form employee resource groups (example: supporting parents during remote learning)
• Utilize digital tools for idea sharing and wellbeing challenges

With employee stress at all-time high, employee health and wellbeing is more important than ever. Realigning your wellbeing strategy will prepare you to proactively address the needs and challenges your employees will face in the upcoming year.

Looking to learn more? Discover the four key 2021 workforce trends by downloading the 2020-2021 Pandemic Special Release Insights Report.