5 Ways to Support Your Employee’s Well-Being During the Ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic

Even without a pandemic, American well-being and mental health have always been a concern. According to the most recent report from Mental Health America, about 19 percent of adults are currently dealing with a mental health illness. The current lack of uncertainty and ongoing change in the world has likely elevated or created symptoms of depression and anxiety in many Americans, impacting their performance at work. During this time (and honestly, all the time), managers should work to make mental well-being a priority, even as things “return to normal.” Many managers have been saying, “I hope you are staying healthy,” here’s how to let our employees know we mean it. 

Acknowledge Potential Well-Being Challenges

If you haven't already, compose a genuine and honest statement for your team that lets them know that the company and yourself consider employee mental health and well-being a top priority. The Center for Workplace Mental Health has an abundance of resources for employers. Spend some time exploring the website to educate yourself so that you can honor your commitment to keeping your employee's well-being a top priority. You can also create a web page, craft a presentation, or create a document that provides a list of resources. 

Respect Their Time

Employees have been unnecessarily working overtime even before the pandemic. Remind your employees that you don’t expect them to work more hours now that many extracurriculars are on pause. Additionally, be flexible with time off by accepting and encouraging a “mental health morning” or “mental health day” for your employees. If you have successfully built a trusting environment, remind your employees that you don’t need to know why they take time off-—just a block on their calendar is enough. 

Be Willing to Relax Your Expectations

As long as the work is getting done, then great.  If your employees have a few slip-ups, remind them it’s okay. If the slip-ups and missed deadlines increase, schedule a meeting with them to chat to see what you can do to help. 

Schedule Weekly Check-Ins

You should aim to schedule weekly five to ten minute meetings with each person on your team where you don’t force work discussion. Build-in some extra time between these meetings if anyone wants to talk longer, but keep the time commitment low. You would probably normally chat with your employees about non-work topics at least once during the week, so why stop when working remotely? 

Encourage Healthy Habits 

It is common knowledge that a healthy lifestyle can go a long way in protecting mental health. Encourage your employees to take walks and stretch throughout the workday. You can also send out weekly self-care tips or yoga and meditation videos. Feel free to collect feedback from your employees on what kind of wellness content they would like in their inbox! 

To Wrap It Up…

While these tips are designed for the Covid-19 Pandemic, that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t be following these tips all of the time to maintain a trusting and open relationship with your employees. You never know what someone is dealing with outside of work. 

Peoplelogic technology can help promote wellness in the work environment by providing real-time recommendations powered by AI. These recommendations, such as “Kim has been working outside of business hours — suggest a day off,” can be a powerful tool for helping drive productivity, engagement,  and increasing employee wellness. 

The platform gives managers actionable recommendations and insights that help spot and correct problems on your team, and between the other teams you work with, before you miss your goals. Get started for free.