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FEATURE: How Easter can serve as a catalyst for employee wellbeing

Rochelle Trow said: “Easter isn’t just a holiday – it’s a mirror for how organisations truly support rest, reflection, and balance.”

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As the Easter season approaches, employers across the UK are re-examining the realities of workplace wellbeing and the true meaning of work-life harmony.

In a world of hybrid work, digital ‘always-on’ culture, and mounting pressures, public holidays like Easter offer not only a welcome pause, but also a chance to reflect on what needs to change for employee health and happiness – not just for a weekend, but all year round.

A meaningful pause

Easter, with its built-in break, is more than a calendar event, says Mike Mansfield, CEO of ProAge. Mansfield explains: “Easter can be a useful pause point in the working year. From an age inclusion perspective, it’s a chance for employers to recognise that employees are at different life stages and may experience holiday periods very differently – as rest, celebration, or a time of increased caring responsibility.”

For some, especially those balancing school holidays or grandparenting, Easter may even bring extra pressure rather than relaxation. The challenge, Mansfield argues, is for organisations to acknowledge these differences and support employees in using the time in ways that best suit their needs.

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Making true disconnection possible

A common thread in expert advice is that genuine rest requires more than permission – it demands practical support. Mansfield says: “The most important step is to make switching off genuinely possible, not just encouraged in theory. That means realistic deadlines, sensible cover arrangements, and managers who do not expect people to remain half-available during leave.”

Rochelle Trow, HR executive, coach and Author of Anchored, agrees, highlighting that culture is revealed in the lead up to every bank holiday. “If the week before every bank holiday turns frantic – late emails, packed diaries, everything suddenly ‘urgent’ – that tells you something about how the organisation actually runs,” Trow says.

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She adds: “People rush to clear desks, squeeze in meetings and tie up loose ends. They leave tired, and we still call it a reset.”

Both experts point to the importance of clear cover, sensible planning, and challenging the reward systems that praise constant availability.

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Trow says: “People only switch off properly when they don’t think it will cost them – in reputation, progression or influence. That safety is built through consistent leadership behaviour, not seasonal reminders.”

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Inclusion and fairness for all

For many, Easter is a time of faith; for others, it is simply a public holiday. Trow cautions against making assumptions about how employees spend the break, and instead encourages HR teams to focus on fairness and consistency.

She says: “The opportunity is in the pause. If we visibly respect Easter but make it difficult for someone to take time for Eid, Diwali or another religious observance, people notice. Inclusion isn’t about acknowledging one holiday well. It’s about fairness in how leave is treated overall.”

Mansfield adds that flexible policies, such as temporary arrangements around school breaks or recognising the needs of grandparents and carers, can help support all employees, regardless of how they spend Easter.

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Addressing the real challenges

Despite best intentions, encouraging employees to switch off is not always straightforward. For many, public holidays can be as stressful as they are restorative, especially for those with caring responsibilities.

Mansfield says: “Holiday periods do not feel equally restful to everyone. For many people in mid and later life, they can come with added caring responsibilities, including helping with grandchildren. We also know that grandparents and kinship carers do not always have straightforward access to the same leave rights, so flexibility matters enormously in practice.”

Trow points to deeper cultural issues, saying: “The biggest challenge isn’t workload. It’s a belief. Many high performers still believe that being constantly available is what makes them valuable. If the people who rise fastest are the ones who never switch off, everyone else is watching. Culture is shaped far more by promotion patterns than by wellbeing campaigns.”

Embedding wellbeing all year round

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Ultimately, experts agree that Easter should be a catalyst, not a one-off exception, for sustainable wellbeing. Trow notes: “It’s easy to tell people to log off for a long weekend. It’s harder to build a culture where they don’t feel penalised for doing it.”

By using Easter as a moment to pause, reflect, and challenge the status quo, HR leaders can set the tone for a culture where wellbeing, inclusion, and work-life balance are truly embedded.

Mansfield adds: “The answer is not just to tell people to prioritise wellbeing, but to encourage employers to design work more realistically and support different life stages more effectively.”

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