‘Wellness’ and ‘wellbeing’ in the workplace are hazy terms that capture both everything and nothing.

“We’ve spent plenty of money on training our team to sell and on how to get a deal done!
What we’ve not focused on is how our people are coping. We’re at the point now where we’re dealing with burnout, stress, and people taking sick days to recover.
This isn’t the kind of business I want to run”.
- Real estate executive

Does this sound familiar? We hear the confusion from leaders trying their best to navigate supporting their staff. We’ve seen firsthand the spend on ‘wellbeing’ in the workplace increasing, with no evidence of how effective those strategies are.

We still live in the shadow of the industrialised era

For almost two centuries, businesses, employers and the employees themselves have viewed staff as just another asset.

set salary for set work
40 hour work week (overtime has also become the norm)
Four weeks annual leave
Financial incentives, promotions, and a gold watch at the end of your 40+ years

The old approach to work isn’t fit for purpose anymore.

The research is telling us this, as is the new generation coming through - but still many organisations either refuse to listen or simply don’t know HOW to change the status quo.

With access to the world’s information literally at their fingertips, people are now more aware than ever of the salaries and working conditions available at different companies. They can also clearly see the profits their organisation makes from all their hard work and innovation - their sacrifice.

The media discourse of ‘Zero-Hour’ contracts, finding extra work to pay the skyrocketing bills (euphemistically known as a ‘side hustle’ - born out of the ‘Gig Economy’), has only confirmed that businesses should have a plan in place on how to attract, understand and retain the new generation of staff.

Over the past decade the importance of mental wellbeing in the workplace has become clear.

Alongside the increasing trends noted earlier, fifteen percent of working age adults are managing a mental health disorder at any one point in time (2) - and that’s just those who reach criteria for a clinically diagnosed disorder.

In many countries (including Australia and New Zealand) legislation protects an employees’ right to psychological safety at work, but where the duty of care for starts and stops for employers remains unclear. Case Law has also not yet been established.

What is clear is the the cost of staff who are struggling with mental wellbeing:

increased sick leave
presenteeism
absenteeism
falling productivity
staff retention problems

There isn’t just a moral and legal imperative to take care of employees, there are financial and commercial implications of not doing so.

Mental health issues are estimated to cost the global economy $1 trillion (USD) each year mainly due to the impacts on productivity (3).

Despite 97% of US companies offering their staff access to an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP), the uptake is around 7%.

”How do I get my depressed employee to come to work instead of binging Netflix? I feel screwed either way - I’m either a bad employer for asking them to try and come to work, or a horrible person to query what they do for their ‘wellness’ “
- NZ business executive

Responding to employees' mental wellbeing has created somewhat of a headache for businesses who know they need to support their staff AND who see the value and benefits for both the individual and organisation.

This has resulted in a wide range of interventions targeting ‘wellbeing’ such as reducing rates of stress, anxiety and depression. Others offer opportunities that sound caring, but may be ineffective tick-box solutions.

The question for leaders who are genuinely concerned is:

“How can I really help support my staff?”

We believe the answer lies in creating a preventative approach for your workforce - not just a reactive response. This means moving beyond just the wellbeing/wellness services you may contract (such as Employee Assistance Providers - EAP) but the culture, understanding and the systems of your business/organisation.

It’s the existing soil and environment that needs tending to as well as the plant

EAP and wellness services generally focus on trying to reduce the symptoms of mental distress. This can mean we pathologise NORMAL human responses to systems that aren’t designed with wellbeing in mind.

‘It’s like looking down the wrong end of the telescope’

The confusion that is currently present can mean that staff expect an organisation remove all risks and stressors from their systems, OR that employers place all the responsibility for wellbeing in the hands of their individual staff. We believe that a partnership approach needs to occur, where joint responsibilities are clear and supported.

What if the workplace was a system that nourished us?

Stress itself is not always the problem, in fact a certain level and type of stress helps build resilience and offers opportunities for professional and personal growth. Research shows that while workplace difficulties can be a leading cause of mental health issues, work can also be a source of coping, prevention and rehabilitation for mental wellbeing and resilience (3).

Where should you focus your resources?

The second wave of wellbeing switches the focus from the symptoms that employees show, to the systems we live and work in.

There are four core domains that are known to help support humans to thrive in the workplace:

Having control
Having meaning
Having connection
Having a sense of competence

These are the fundamental human needs that nourish a person to meet the challenges of their future.

We know that when these basic needs are met, it can be protective against developing mental health disorders, and they can also provide support for those managing and recovering from mental health challenges.

We can help you move from looking at the symptoms of the problem, to exploring the potential for humans to thrive at work.

So…..How are your people really doing?

And how is your business helping them thrive in the workplace? For their benefit, AND for the future of your organisation.

Join the 2025 National Thrive Survey to participate in the conversation.

View the report

References

1. Fuller, J., Kerr, W. (2022). The Great Resignation Didn’t Start With The Pandemic. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2022/03/the-great-resignation-didnt-start-with-the-pandemic

2. World Health Organisation (2022). WHO guidelines on mental health at work. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240053052

3. World Health Organisation (2022). Mental Health at Work: Policy Brief. file:///Users/marymiller/Downloads/9789240057944-eng.pdf

4. NZIER. (2022). Zooming into better work-life balance? Gender and equity insights from New Zealanders’ experiences with working from home. A report for ASB. https://www.nzier.org.nz/hubfs/Public%20Publications/Client%20reports/NZIER%20ASB%20WFH%20impacts%20on%20gender%20equity_FINAL.pdf

What’s wrong with wellbeing?