Why your company needs a Wellbeing policy

Employers have legal duties to protect the health and safety of their staff, including a duty to ensure the health, safety and welfare of all employees as far as reasonably possible (The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974) and a requirement to assess risks to employees and take steps to avoid or reduce these risks (The Management of Health & Safety at Work Regulations 1999). 

 

These regulations cover mental health, safety, and risks, as well as physical. However, according to the Health and Safety Executive half of the cases of workplace-related illness reported in 2019/2020 were due to stress, depression or anxiety, which suggests that more needs to be done to focus on mental wellbeing at work. 

 

Your wellbeing policy is an important part of meeting these duties. It should set out how you ensure the health and safety of your employees, remind your managers of the importance of wellbeing, and help them to manage staff in a way consistent with your legal duties. It could also be used as evidence in a tribunal hearing. 

 

More employees are prioritising their wellbeing at work and looking for employers who do the same. A third (32%) of UK workers want a more mindful culture with set work boundaries while one quarter (25%) said they are more attracted to companies that are proactive about the mental health and wellness of their people. 

 

Prioritising the wellbeing of your team will help you to attract quality candidates when you’re next recruiting. 

 

Poor wellbeing can be costly to your business. In 2019/2020, 17.9 million working days were lost due to work-related stress, anxiety or depression, and ACAS estimates that businesses collectively lose up to £2.3 billion each year in reduced output from employees who are unhappy at work. 

 

Your business could lose even more if employees resign due to the company culture – as almost one third (27%) of UK employees have done. ACAS estimates that businesses spend £2.6 billion each year in recruiting replacement employees and lose an additional £12.2 billion in reduced output during recruitment and training. 

 

A good wellbeing policy will let employees know how to raise concerns or problems and help them to feel comfortable talking about their wellbeing. This feedback is invaluable in helping you improve or maintain your workplace culture and so avoid the costs of sickness absence, high turnover and low productivity. 

 

 

We can help you produce an employee handbook that is specific to your needs, easy to read and easy to understand. Each of our handbooks are tailored to your own business by one of our employment solicitors. You will have peace of mind that your policy is thorough, and there are no misunderstandings that could leave you facing legal claims. 

 

Our set of 20 tailored, easy-to-read policies – including a wellbeing policy - costs £895 +VAT. 

 

Find out more and get in touch.