Marvin Onumonu47% of employers saw a rise in productivity when they supported their workers’ health and wellbeing, according to research from GRiD.
63% measured the impact of looking after staff, and 98% of those said it had a positive effect on their business.
Of those, 42% said it showed employees the business cares, which built loyalty.
41% said it helped manage absence and meant staff came back to work sooner.
38% believed a healthy workforce boosted financial results.
37% said supporting staff was central to their company ethos, while 33% saw a positive financial return.
32% said it set them apart from competitors and helped with recruitment and retention.
31% said a good wellbeing policy helped win clients.
The research found that four pillars of wellness – financial, physical, mental and social – mattered to workers.
Employers offering group risk benefits like life assurance, income protection and critical illness cover were able to support staff across these areas.
Some providers also offered help to HR teams to get the most from their benefits programmes.
GRiD has encouraged employers who do not measure the impact of supporting staff to start doing so.
Katharine Moxham, spokesperson for GRiD, said: “Supporting the wellbeing of staff is a virtuous circle: staff are more likely to remain in the business and work more productively.
“This in turn means that the business is financially successful, but also seen to be having a positive impact in other areas, which in turn attracts new clients and new staff.
“With business purse-strings now tighter than ever, measuring the impact of supporting staff has never been more important to help HR departments retain their benefits budget and look after their people.”
