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22 Jul 2020
by Rima Evans

Wellbeing strategies widen their reach ­– among employers as well as different workers

The percentage of organisations with a wellbeing strategy in place has more than doubled since 2016, soaring from 30% to 62% Schemes are also being applied in a more consistent way and being extended to non-employees.

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The Employee Wellbeing Research 2020 report, published by REBA in association with AXA PPP healthcare, has shown that having a joined-up wellbeing plan in place has now become a core part of corporate culture and is continuing to gain popularity.

Of the 38% of employers that haven’t yet implemented a strategy, more than half (52%) plan to introduce one this year and a further 29% plan to in the medium term.

Just one in 100 of the 309 wellbeing, HR and employee benefits professionals surveyed said they had no interest in establishing a wellbeing strategy for employees. While barriers preventing employers from putting strategies into action (lack of funding (36%), lack of in-house expertise (32%), or senior management support (22%) persist, this year has seen a decrease in the percentage of employers that face such obstacles compared with 2019.

The research indicates that strategies are continuing to be fine-tuned in order to improve effectiveness.   

For example, half (51%) of organisations said they manage their wellbeing strategies consistently, meaning plans are offered across the board with no employees excluded. When compared with a year ago, only 25% said that was the case.

“It is encouraging to see so many of our respondents now applying their wellbeing strategies more consistently across their organisations to maximise their benefit for individuals and at corporate level,” the report said.

Also significant is that wellbeing strategies are being offered to groups of workers other than employees. More than half (55%) of organisations ensure contracted staff receive the same access to wellbeing initiatives as their permanent employees. And around one in 10 respondents extend their wellbeing strategies to freelancers and gig workers (12%) or supply chain staff (8%).

Calls for different types of workers to be given the same health and wellbeing provision as permanent staff have been growing, says the report. COVID-19 has given the issue greater weight because the risk of a deterioration in physical and mental health among all groups of workers has been heightened, it added.

Download a copy of the 92-page Employee Wellbeing Research 2020 (free to REBA Professional Members).

The author is Rima Evans, freelance writer for REBA.