Employee Wellbeing, COVID-19 and Team Resilience.

The naked truth is that employee wellbeing is critical to the success of a business. This has been the case long before the pandemic. However, now more than ever, with the appearance of COVID-19, organizations and businesses need to be prepared to take action and implement mental health initiatives in their workplaces.

As mental health experts have warned, there is an impending mental health crisis following the COVID-19 pandemic. Is your business capable of withstanding this crisis? Do your employees have access to mental health resources? Have you built your resilience and that of your employees? These are questions that business owners and managers need to ask themselves. If your answers are yes, then you are good to go! If your answers are no, then you have work to do.

What is the link between employee wellbeing and business success?

The Oxford dictionary defines wellbeing as the state of being comfortable, healthy or happy. I believe this is both a physical and mental state of comfort. When it comes to physical health, people tend to have minimal apprehension seeking help and finding help. However, particularly in our country, Nigeria, seeking and finding mental health support can be challenging for a myriad of reasons. If organizations and businesses are able to circumvent these challenges by demystifying and de-stigmatizing mental health in the workplace (through training and psycho-education) and providing quality mental health services (e.g. counselling), then they are well on their way to ensuring employee wellbeing.

The question still remains, why should a business owner or manager prioritize employee wellbeing? Why take on the added costs, and challenges of implementing mental health in the workplace? Well, the answer is simple. How your employees feel has a direct impact on their performance. An unhappy, unwell employee will cost you financially.

Depression and anxiety have a significant economic impact; the estimated cost to the global economy is US$ 1 trillion per year in lost productivity. (WHO, 2019)

Creating a positive and healthy working environment is crucial in fostering positivity and comfort in your employees. Addressing mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, chronic stress and burnout, bipolar disorder, ADHD, etc. can help you avoid their negative consequences: work errors, workplace accidents, poor decision making, turnover of staff, absenteeism, and overall reduction in work performance and productivity.

I should not fail to mention that mental and physical health are inextricably linked. If you do not cater to the mental health of your employees, you may end up having to cater to their resulting physical ill-health. For example, the high blood pressure, ulcers and sleeping disorders that may be as a result of stress and burnout, will lead to some employees needing extended leave or quitting completely. Keep in mind that this is possibly after a period of time of decreased performance and lost productivity.

What is Resilience and how can you build your team’s resilience?

Resilience is a person’s ability to bounce back or adapt to life’s challenges (such as conflict/crisis, pandemics, natural disasters, medical problems, relationship problems, etc.). Everyone has resilience. What differs is the level of resilience and the ability to utilize it well.

Building the resilience of your team means creating a positive work culture and environment that allows them to thrive. Identifying toxic behaviours, and psycho-social hazards in the workplace is an essential step towards creating a healthier work environment.

Some practical steps that you can take to build resilience are:

• Create a culture of support: Social support is a major stress deterrent. If your employees find solace amongst each other and are able to express their discomforts and struggles without fear of condemnation and judgement, then they will be more prepared to overcome challenges within the workplace.
• Develop a workplace mental health strategy: Focus on developing an integrated approach to mental health in the workplace. This approach will focus on protecting the mental health of your staff, promoting their wellbeing and providing support when mental health issues arise.
• Build trust within your teams: Try and avoid micro-managing. It can negatively impact on the morale of your employees and lead them to believe that you have no faith in their abilities. This could lead to decreased performance and ultimately employees quitting.

By building your team’s resilience and prioritizing their wellbeing, you are protecting your business and preparing it to withstand organizational stress and other external crises. So, why not start today?

Click here to find out more about developing a workplace mental heath strategy.