This week's Talent and HR News Weekly Roundup includes topics on workplace wellness (and we threw a fun one in there for you - see if you can spot it). Thanks for reading and have a great weekend folks!
1) Is sleep the next frontier of workplace wellness? from Employee Benefit News
"New numbers from staffing firm Accountemps peg the severity of the epidemic, reporting that 74% of U.S. workers say they work while tired, with nearly one-third (31%) saying they do so very often. The costs of working tired are high for both employers and employees. More than 1,000 employees surveyed by Accountemps cited lack of focus or being easily distracted (52%), procrastinating more (47%), being grumpy (38%) and making more mistakes (29%) among the consequences. What’s worse, if employers don’t take action, lack of sleep can lead to bigger problems in the workplace — such as burnout, turnover and a negative corporate culture, along with lost sales and productivity, explains Bill Driscoll, district president of Accountemps."
2) Basic human values that empower high-performance workplaces from Smartblog on Leadership
"Although business leaders try to boost performance by enforcing rules, their efforts lead, ironically, to disengagement and apathy, and an estimated 70% of employees in the United States remain miserable in their jobs. The issue lies in employee morale. To create an inspired, high-performing workforce, leaders should promote five basic human values: positive assumptions, trust, inclusion, challenge, and recognition. By making these into core company values, leaders can motivate employees to do their best work and to spread positive energy."
3) Is Workplace Wellness ‘Establishment’ Politics at its Worst? from Huffington Post
"The “establishment” vs. the “insurgency.” The former represents the traditional wings of the parties, while the latter — the mad-as-hell Trump and Sanders supporters — hate the cozy relationship between business and government. (True, they express that hatred in far different ways, but that’s a topic for others to explore.) Nothing epitomizes the disconnect between those two wings more than when employers “play doctor” by instituting employee wellness. This bald we-know-what’s-good-for-you power grab by the elites is disdained or detested by almost every employee subjected to it. And for good reason — these programs are hugely intrusive but don’t improve health or save money, not even a little. Some aredownright dangerous."
4) Nap under your desk like a professional with the 'Schnap' hammock from Mashable (editor note: because, why not?)
"Anyone who says they basically live at the office now has an excuse to make that a reality. While taking a quick snooze under one's desk used to mean laying on the floor in the fetal position hoping nobody finds you, one design student has changed the game. Aqil Raharjo is a second-year design student at the Ontario College of Art and Design University in Toronto, Canada. He is also the creator of Schnap — "a nap in a snap" — which is a comfortable hammock that can be hung under a table or desk."
5) The new direction of corporate wellness from Miami Herald
"Corporate wellness programs began as a way for employers to cut rising healthcare costs and many introduced weight loss, fitness and smoking cessation programs to make their workers healthier. But now, employers are realizing wellness has a purpose way beyond medical savings and are focusing on creating a culture where workers are mentally, socially and physically healthy. At Bankers Healthcare Group in Davie, the new holistic approach has caught on. Throughout the day, some employees retreat to a chill-out room where they do nothing but breathe deeply or sit in silence. Others hit the gym for a fitness bootcamp or visit with a dietician to gather healthy recipes."
Lexi Gordon is a Lead Consultant for exaqueo, a workforce consultancy that helps organizations build their cultures, employer brands and talent strategies. Contact exaqueo to learn more about our employer brand innovation, workforce research, and recruiting strategy offerings.