Blue Monday, also known as the saddest day of the year, takes place next Monday, January 16, and refers to a set of variables that influence the character and mood of people. This term originated in 2005, the year in which the Cardiff University professor developed a mathematical formula that collected a series of parameters such as the weather, the time elapsed since the Christmas holidays, the debts acquired following these dates and the cost January, as well as the motivation and the time elapsed since the last attempt to abandon a bad habit. The result of the formula decreed that the third Monday of the month of January was the day in which people presented the saddest point of the year.
Within the framework of this event, AdQualis presents the most common wellness policies in companies and points out the importance of promoting wellbeing to achieve good team performance and attract and retain talent.
Improving the physical and emotional health of professionals is becoming increasingly essential to boost the motivation, commitment and productivity of the workforce. According to data from the WHO, 45% of employees acknowledge suffering from work stress. In addition, the latest report from the ADP Research Institute reflects that more than half of the global workforce feel that their performance is affected due to their mental health.
In this sense, there are many companies that have chosen to implement new ways to support the mental health of their staff. The frequent stress already experienced by many employees increased significantly during the pandemic, since which time companies have integrated initiatives to improve mental health such as psychological therapy services to combat the symptoms of depression, demotivation and the dream “burnout” at work. Other initiatives in this line are maintaining more direct and active communication with workers and offering breaks to control stress such as relaxation and meditation activities such as yoga and mindfulness classes, having access to a room “zen” or have additional breaks during the day.
Take care of diet and physical condition of employees is another of the initiatives developed by companies in order to have happier and healthier workforces. In this regard, many organizations have implemented specialized nutrition services and the offer of healthy snacks in their canteens. In line with the improvement of health, it is scientifically proven that many jobs are sedentary, which is why many workers spend most of their working day sitting in their offices. To remedy this, many companies offer free services or deep discounts so that their employees can go to gyms or sports centers regularly.
Another important initiative to boost the enthusiasm and motivation of employees, which in turn improves the management and retention of talent, are the policies of work-life balance, that is, the freedom to telework and the flexibility of entry and exit hours. An example of this is companies that give employees the possibility of teleworking on non-school days to improve their work-life balance at home, or companies that establish relationships of trust with their staff so that they have the freedom to achieve their extra-work goals and feel carried out both inside and outside the company, something essential in the younger generations.
Finally, encourage training of employees is another of the activities designed by human resources departments to improve employee development. In this sense, the assignment of tasks is essential to keep employees motivated. It is not just regarding making objectives available to everyone, each professional has some skills, added to his experience, which allow him to carry out some activities more easily than others. In addition, it is important that employees feel valued and recognized and for this they must do what they are best at, but it is also important to maintain their motivation that new challenges be proposed to them and that they be instructed in different activities.
