Wellbeing strategies for 2024

Written by Adam Spawton-Rice on 06/02/24

As 2024 unfolds, health and wellbeing are front of mind for many employees, as an employer you can be a part of their journey too.

Your employees may have set resolutions and hopefully, some of their aspirations are supported by your company’s health strategy. But how can you engage employees to show support for the year ahead?

At Simplyhealth, we understand that for employees to perform well, they need to feel well, too.

Man bent over with back pain after using machinery

Identifying common health challenges

Musculoskeletal (MSK) issues, mental health concerns and their broader impact on employee wellbeing are at the top of many workplaces' list of challenges.

In 2023 Simplyhealth and the CIPD uncovered a pressing need for comprehensive wellbeing support in the UK workforce, with 70% of employers viewing health and wellbeing initiatives as a tool to boost engagement.

Our partners, including EQL (Phio) and Ascenti, are seeing issues first-hand, with the impact of MSK injuries, for example, felt across the board.

“About a third of the UK population (over 20 million people) live with an MSK condition. As well as directly impacting quality of life, over 30 million working days are lost each year due to MSK conditions – which has a knock-on effect on employers, the NHS and the wider economy.

- Peter Grinbergs, Chief Medical Officer, EQL

The most common causes of short-term absence^*

94% minor illness e.g. colds/flu, stomach upsets, headaches or migraines

45% MSK injuries e.g. neck strains or repetitive strain injury, including back pain

39% mental ill health e.g. clinical depression or anxiety

37% COVID-19 including confirmed cases, self-isolation, quarantine, shielding

26% stress

*CIPD 2023 Health and Wellbeing at Work Report

A factory worker giving her colleague a high-five

Empower your people

A great way to support your team’s health goals is to get them talking about their health.

Prompt managers to use awareness days throughout the year, such as 'Time to Talk Day' on 1st February and Stress Awareness Month in April as a reason to talk to direct reports or teams about any health issues they feel comfortable discussing e.g. How’s your home office health?

From breaking down the complexities of MSK challenges to addressing the rise in long-term absence, we provide a range of content that helps employers and employees alike to have these discussions.

Our website contains lots of practical insight about treatments and conditions they can address using their Simplyhealth membership.

Employee wellbeing strategies

Now you have an idea of the bigger issues your people could be facing, break these down into smaller, actionable areas.

Your bigger goals will be based on both your self-reported employee data and known UK workforce health issues. Breaking these down allows you to focus on individual conditions and prevention.

Another great way to engage employees with their health plan is through SimplyRewards, which consists of health and wellbeing product discounts, discounted gym memberships, wearable tech and more.

Simplyhealth member rewards

Health and nutrition

Your employees can eat well using our health and nutrition rewards, with discounts on brands like Gousto and MyProtein.

Man wearing headphones and smart watch, smiling and resting during run

Fitness

We offer a range of fitness rewards to help keep health plan members active, including brands like Fiit, Peloton, and My Gym Discounts.

Wellbeing

Our wellbeing rewards help your employees take time for themselves, offering discounts on brands like SpaBreaks.com and HotelPlanner.

Holistic wellbeing support

For award-winning (or even industry-standard) workplace wellbeing, employers need proactive strategies. We're here to be your partner in empowering your people.

Wellbeing is a broad term encompassing physical and mental health. Crafting an employee wellbeing strategy is more than a plan; it's a commitment to keeping everyone healthy and happy.

Creating community

As an employer, lots of the work you do will be to create a supportive environment where employees feel connected. From there, your people might need a little support knowing what their health plan can do for them.

Use this guide to support and prioritise the health and wellbeing of your greatest asset - your people. Let 2024 be the year your workforce thrives.

Our clinical partners

Discover how our partnership with EQL (Phio) enables your employees to access an online muscle and joint pain assessment for an injury or concern. Quickly directing people, with musculoskeletal issues, to the right care for their needs.

Discover how our partnership with Health Assured provides counselling and advice for various aspects of life, from career decisions to financial management.

Discover our partnership with Ascenti, offering your employees easy access to affordable in-person physiotherapy. Ascenti has over 300 clinics nationwide, with access to discounted prices of £39.50 per appointment.

A 4-step guide to building an employee health strategy

Help your employees to feel their best at work in 2024. Practical guidance to help you unpack the complicated bits of employee health.

Step 1: Find out the top three health issues facing your employees

Simplyhealth uses an insight-based to approach, which allows us to estimate common health issues based on employee age, demographics and location.

Step 2: Collect common themes

It’s worth considering that some big health issues may not be captured due to their sensitive nature. Collect what you can and review against public health data. You can use this information to inform your next step.

Step 3: ‘Bucket’ your themes

Bucketing themes makes it easier to consolidate content and provide clearer communications. For example: mental health, MSK and dental health.

Step 4: Get leadership buy-in

One of the key success drivers for employee engagement is leadership support. The CIPD found that leadership and line managers' focus on wellbeing increased during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic for obvious reasons, but has since declined in the last couple of years.

One vital difference could be senior leadership engagement with colleague health.

View our 2024 health and wellbeing calendar

The Insights Hub

Feel your best at work in 2024