This is a changing world and the world of work is no longer what it was even 18 months ago. COVID has highlighted underlying concerns and sped up the process of employment changes and our relationship between work and play.

“Now more than ever, people are evaluating their lives and how and where they invest their energy – and they want an employer that supports the lifestyle they aspire to.”*

Having met and discussed this viewpoint with employers across a range of industries the responses are not always favourable! I’ve often received quite controversial answers from the older generations trying to understand the mindset of their younger colleagues! But regardless of whether you agree with Gen Y and Z or not, it is an opinion that’s not going away.

The global pandemic has greatly exacerbated this opinion and there are a staggering number of reports indicating that mental health concerns in particular have leapt up across the working population:

“This need to improve wellbeing has never mattered more. Worldwide, employees’ daily stress climbed to 43% in 2020. The findings in this report indicate that we are in the middle of a global mental health crisis that will only intensify without broadscale intervention.”*

It’s also not a case of simply providing a ‘token gesture’ to employees and hoping that’s enough! It often requires a cultural shift and this needs to come from the senior leadership team. For some organisations this will take a monumental effort and a period of time to adapt and adjust but for the majority of modern organisations it will be constantly improving, tweaking and reviewing what is already in place.

“Today, workplaces that want to compete for talent know they can’t depend on the status quo: Employees now expect a real commitment to supporting thriving lives from leaders. That is, it’s imperative for leaders to not only care for but also actually improve their employees’ wellbeing.”*
If you feel your organisation needs some help with bringing their offering in line with the changing workforce, we are here to help! Talk to me about our Wellbeing Audits to help you embed health and wellbeing in your culture.
*source: Gallup, August 2021