Why Employee Well-Being Is Essential To Your Business

There are many lessons that food and beverage industry executives and HR managers can take from 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to the importance of keeping a supply chain moving and inventory stocked, it’s critical to have protocols in place to provide and care for employees’ mental and physical health.

Even without an international health crisis, caring for your employees’ health and encouraging and creating ways to care for themselves and their families is good business and fosters loyalty.

Why Does Employee Well-Being Matter?

Recent research suggests workplace stress costs employers an estimated $200 billion each year in healthcare costs, to say nothing of turnover and reduced productivity.

If your supply chain is disrupted, are you ready to adapt? Read more.

A share of that $200 billion loss is too significant a price to pay for any company in any year. From Richard Branson to Bill Gates, many leading executives are now embracing employee wellness as a priority because they understand that health has to be a pillar of the company’s overall success. Healthy employees with lower levels of stress and access to quality health care are more likely to stay in a job and outperform their peers than in organizations that don’t pay attention to such things. Investing in employee health care pays real dividends while cutting down on sick time.

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During a pandemic, your employees are stressed more than ever about their health and their safety at work. Taking the time to install additional provisions to protect them and your clients or customers will go a long way toward providing peace of mind and boosting their confidence. For restaurants, this is doubly true: Your employees will feel safe coming to work, and your customers will feel better about eating in your establishment, knowing everything complies with state and federal requirements for sanitation.

What Can I Do?

A well-designed health and wellness program can alleviate stress, improve productivity, reduce absenteeism, foster loyalty, boost employee relationships, and breed trust and contentment among employees. It can also cut costs: Johnson & Johnson estimates the company’s wellness programs saved more than $250 million in health care costs within ten years, with a return on investment of $2.71 for every dollar spent.

It’s worth investing in these programs because rewards can’t always be measured by a bottom line (although your bottom line could see an improvement). Employees aren’t just looking for a paycheck anymore; they want to be valued and treated as necessary; they contribute to the company in ways other than just the bottom line. There’s a real weight given to relationship building between managers and employees across the working world, and the food and beverage industry is no different.

Higher pay or more benefits: What matters more to employees? Read more.

Implementing a culture of health and well-being, taking steps to minimize and cope with stress, and providing employees with resources to help them take care of themselves and their families to reduce illness can be easily adapted to suit your company’s needs.

What do younger workers want? Read more about the millennial employee’s priorities.

As a food and beverage industry company, you might have resources available to encourage your employees to eat more fruits and vegetables, which can help improve their overall health, both mentally and physically.

Is your workforce engaged and invested? Here’s how to tell.

Now Is the Best Time To Start

Now that we’re at the end of 2020 and you’re preparing for 2021, take a look around and see how your company can help reduce employee stress and improve health and morale.

Do you need to make some changes as you hire for 2021? We can help! Kinsa Group has a strong grasp of what today’s job seeker is looking for and can recommend best practices for offering packages beyond the base salary. Contact us today and let’s find a way to attract and retain a strong and healthy workforce that can grow your food or beverage business.