How is your company doing in terms of organisational health and workplace wellbeing?

There is currently a wave of interest in various quarters in managing employee wellbeing. Why? The evidence says that supporting an employee's wellbeing is not only more likely to have them return to work quickly and without fuss, it also improves their ongoing health, and it is likely to improve overall employee productivity and workplace performance. It makes sound business sense to have an employee health and wellbeing program.

I chair the Australasian Faculty of Occupational and Environmental Medicine’s Policy and Advocacy committee. We have a working group that is specifically devoted to the issues of Work and Health which I, along with Dr David Beaumont (NZ) co-chair.

Professor Dame Carol Black (UK) was keynote speaker at one of our scientific meetings. You can read more about Carol in Tom Barton’s feature which summarizes ‘The Black Report’.

Listening to Dame Carol, what became clear to me is the successful approach taken in the UK to developing a national awareness of the importance of workplace health and wellbeing. They have made progress via broad participation of organisations and stakeholders that support productivity and employee well-being.  It is an approach characterised by community input, consultation and partnership. Individuals and organisations nationwide have contributed to recommendations and program development in a comprehensive process developed over time that has now been adopted by government.

In Australia, many disparate organisations are beginning to look at work and health. These include employers, policy makers, private health insurers, and some in the medical profession. There are already a range of private providers who offer services in this area.

While I admire the initiative of these individual stakeholders, I think that tackling work and health in Australia and New Zealand should be done in a similar fashion to the UK. Indeed, evidence-based literature tells us that the most effective way to improve workplace wellness and productivity is via a partnership approach. When an organisation’s culture fosters and publicises participation at all levels-from senior to middle managers, to line managers, to employees, the outcome is positive and RTW success rates goes up. 

What succeeds inside an organisation also works between organisations, institutions and authorities at every level.  We need consultation and partnership with stakeholders at local, state and federal levels if we are to grow a national consciousness and participation in workplace health and wellbeing.

In our view isolated policies or programs, for example state sponsored workplace health checks, are not of significant benefit. The danger of solitary stakeholders tackling work health issues in isolation, without union, and employer participation runs the risk of simply getting people off side. In the end it wastes employees' time and a great deal of public money.

We were heartened to hear details of Dame Carol’s approach in the UK, where the plan is to work with National Health Service to set an example for other employers and the community. The values underpinning the UK approach are cooperation, partnership, listening and respect: these same values that improve workplace health and wellbeing coincidentally also effectively tackle workplace productivity.  

How well are you doing in terms of health and wellbeing? This can be a tricky question to answer. The UK has developed an excellent tool you can use to assess your organisation – The Workplace Wellbeing Tool. Sharing this kind of information amongst stakeholders is a small step, but it's a step in the right direction!