The “bedrock” of the CIPD Well-being Pyramid is culture, leadership and people management. These are the best ways to ensure you’re creating a solid foundation to your workplace well-being efforts:
Write or review your Policy on supporting employees through life transitions
Policies are important to provide explicit guidelines that can be easily referred to. As always, employee participation is important, even in policy development, to create an empowering and supportive environment.
Policies that aim to support employees through life transitions can include explicit information on:
- This is a helpful position paper by the Irish Hospice Foundation that makes the case for good grief and bereavement care in the workplace for employers, employee representative organisations and policymakers.
- The legal supports required in terms of long-term leave etc.
- How the organisation will promote awareness of navigating life transitions and provide coping strategies (such as posters and workshops) etc.
- Available supports for employees who are experiencing a life transition (such as an EAP etc.).
- We provide many resources and templates for developing workplace policies.
It’s important to note that while incorporating a wellbeing policy is the bedrock of a sound organisational approach to workplace wellness, this may be difficult and will take time. Working on the other activities in tandem with incremental policy development may be necessary to facilitate this level.
Increase the capacity of your managers
It’s important for your managers to fully understand the company policy and its implications. It may be helpful to link with community organisations or Occupational Health staff who can provide training for your managers on how to be supportive during various life transitions.
Identify Health Champions
It is important to formally dedicate a member of senior-level staff by including these activities in their job description and performance reviews, while building their capacity with appropriate training.
Continuous commitment to the Workplace Wellbeing Programme
It is important to incorporate the wellbeing of your employees into your core values and the company’s strategic plan. Wellness staff and employees should be supported both with resources (budget, tools, trainings etc.) and with encouragement (job security, reasonable flexibility with time and productivity expectations when availing of initiatives, leading by example etc.)
Making your work environment supportive
Consider the commitments that your organisation is able to make in terms of flexibility in productivity or work schedule expectations. Link in with community organisations who specialise in life transition contexts, such as bereavement, to understand ways to create a supportive work environment for your employees.
Consider an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
These programmes can help ensure that you also have supports in place for employees who might need rehabilitation or guidance through a challenging time. Talk to your insurance provider to see what they offer and to understand your options.