A recent study reveals that women in the workplace don’t experience the same stress levels as men. Whereas 52% of male workers in the United States and Canada reported they felt stress “a lot of the day yesterday,” the number for female workers was 62%.
Those higher stress levels, which can stem from a variety of factors, put women at higher risks for health issues, as well as threaten their ability to perform optimally in the workplace. To mitigate those risks, organizations must take steps to empower women’s well-being.
The Many Facets of Workplace Well-Being
Health and wellness are a big part of workplace well-being, but they aren’t the only facets. Well-being is about the overall quality of the employee’s life. It involves physical, emotional, mental, financial, social, community, and career health. Comprehensive workplace well-being programs help employees experience satisfaction in all of these areas.
For the employee, improvements in well-being result in reduced stress, greater resilience, and increased job satisfaction. For the employer, encouraging well-being creates a workforce that’s more engaged, more productive, and better equipped to manage the challenges of the future.
Initiatives That Support Women’s Wellness
In general, workplace wellness initiatives seek to inform, promote, and support employees as they pursue better health in a number of areas. Educational programs aimed at empowering better health practices are one type of wellness initiative. Workplace policies that support wellness, such as those that provide parental leave or flexible scheduling, are another example.
To specifically support women’s wellness, initiatives must consider the unique challenges women face. The following represent some of the key areas that should be addressed:
- Comprehensive health benefits: Standard health coverage may not address the full spectrum of women’s health issues. To fully support women’s wellness, health benefits should cover preventive screenings, family planning, mental health support, and care for chronic issues that affect women. Company policies should also consider issues related to women’s health, such as maternity leave and other reproductive healthcare concerns.
- Workplace flexibility: Organizations that provide opportunities for remote work, hybrid work, and job-sharing assist women in balancing the needs of career and family. A recent survey reveals flexibility to be the most important workplace factor for women, with 35% saying they’ve left a job because of a lack of flexibility.
- Career equality: Organizations must foster a diverse and inclusive work environment if they intend to support women’s well-being. Policies and practices should value contributions that women make to company success, especially by providing equal pay and advancement opportunities. Meaningful well-being also involves encouraging women’s participation in leadership, which drives personal fulfillment, as well as higher organizational profitability.
- Supportive managerial practices: Managers can find it challenging to empathetically support women’s wellness without proper training. Effective training prepares managers to anticipate and address issues ranging from pregnancy-related accommodations to microaggressions. Ideally, training on women’s wellness will be extended to all employees, allowing them to become more aware of key issues such as gender sensitivity and unconscious bias.
Initiatives aimed at improving workplace well-being are more important than ever. A recent survey by Deloitte found that the majority of employees believe their health either declined or stayed the same during 2022. Few reported any significant improvement.
By paying special attention to the unique issues involved in women’s wellness, organizations take a significant step toward building a culture that values employees and supports their overall well-being. As a result, they can enjoy greater levels of engagement, loyalty, and productivity.
Lauren Winans is the CEO and Principal HR Consultant for Next Level Benefits, an HR consulting practice offering clients access to HR professionals for both short-term and long-term projects. Based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, she has 20 years of HR and employee benefits experience and possesses a deep expertise of HR best practices and what resonates with employees. She founded Next Level Benefits in 2019, offering HR teams access to former corporate HR professionals on demand when they need them most.