When we hear of healthy workplaces, what do we think of? Free gym membership for all staff, fresh fruit provided daily in bowls around the office, organised outdoor fun days where we close up shop for the day and bond and keep fit?
All too much really, isn't it? For small organisations it truly is and having a healthy workplace needn't be that difficult nor that expensive.
Like all things it is easier to start small and gradually increase the effort until you can achieve the same as the bigger boys and know the benefits of your actions.
Firstly start with one that you almost certainly do anyway. Monitor the sickness and absence rate of your workers, knowing the current rate can let you see if any improvements are gained from your actions, and it is also a valuable tool to determine if there are any serious issues affecting your workforce.
Secondly, enforce the health and safety rules, that means telling people off for breaking the rules not laughing at them as they come a cropper when they do. A common defence in unfair dismissal trials is that the management knew about the bad practises for a long time and did nothing to stop them. So this one could save you money too! Make sure that everyone takes a break a lunchtime, it has been proven that there is a greater output in the afternoon if a beak of 20 minutes away from the desk is taken.
Thirdly, lead by example. That means that you use the step ladders not the chair to reach high files, you don't boast about having driven all night to get back from a clients so that you would be in work the next day for a meeting, but rather, take the breaks that you need for that long drive, arrive safely and have the meeting and then go home and rest. You are not super(wo)man either.
Finally check the paperwork, ensure that those workers using their own cars for business are properly insured to do so, monitor the number of hours that they are driving. Even car drivers can suffer from stress from long drives and can cause accidents just as lorry drivers can.
Once all these things have been achieved carry on monitoring the absence rate and if you have greater productivity then you can start on the fruit and organising a night out at the bowling, light exercise, lots of fun!
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