As workers continue to work remotely, certain health challenges persist due to stress, isolation, lack of exercise, and unhealthy eating habits. This is why the majority of employees—more than three-quarters, to be exact—struggle to find the time and energy to adopt healthy habits.
Global real estate consultancy JLL conducted a survey among 1,500 office workers across Asia Pacific to assess their state of mind, understand sentiment, and identify their expectations of their workplace and employer. The results of this study are included in the report “How Regenerative Workplaces Can Restore Employee Wellbeing,” which may be downloaded via JLL’s website: jll.com.ph
Workers expect employers to prioritize health
The abovementioned survey shows that majority of the workforce expect their employers to prioritize health and wellness in the office. Employers who fail to address this need may risk losing talent, impacting their organization’s overall performance.
JLL’s survey findings show that workers are increasingly seeking workplaces that support mental, social, and physical health, as well as employers who endorse flexible company policies and an inclusive managerial mindset. Some forms of such support include healthy food services, relaxation spaces, and fitness centers. These items top the list of what employees want in their physical workplaces. However, only one in four employees currently have access to these amenities.
The research shows that close to one-third of the employees surveyed lack access to health and wellbeing amenities at the workplace, highlighting an opportunity for employers to endorse healthy working habits and organize events on wellbeing, on-site clinics, or fitness classes. For the efforts to succeed, JLL points out that health and wellbeing must become ingrained in the organization’s culture as well as in the employees’ daily routines.
CEO of JLL Asia Pacific Anthony Couse says, “Encouraging employees back to offices is not only about supporting flexibility, it’s also about offering them inclusive work practices and wellbeing amenities that enable a healthy work-life balance. Employers have a new responsibility to actively support the evolving wellbeing needs of their people. By doing so, companies will be in a position to create a workplace where their employees can flourish and achieve sustainable performance in the long term.”
A guide for companies
In consideration of these shifting wellbeing expectations, JLL, in partnership with applied anthropologist Chris Diming, created a framework to guide companies on their journey towards the creation of a regenerative workplace. This guide includes three main pillars–mental health, social health, and physical health–and nine corresponding traits for companies to adopt so they can build a workplace that reconciles both employee wellbeing and work performance.
Ian Lozada, Senior Director of JLL Philippines’ Work Dynamics, concludes, “As we transition to a post-pandemic future that includes a return to the office, employers must create a work environment that supports mental, social, and physical health, and policies that promote flexibility and inclusion to ensure that people thrive and perform better. JLL offers data-driven insights to help companies on their journey to create more sustainable employee performance across their workforce.”