What Are Employee Well-being Days?
Corporate America tends to champion “hustle culture,” a mindset that places a strong emphasis on constantly working hard, often to the detriment of one's personal life, health, and wellbeing.
Unsurprisingly, work stress is the leading driver of mental health challenges in the U.S.
According to Calm’s 2023 Workplace Mental Health Trends Report, 76% of respondents say that mental health benefits are critical to them when evaluating a new job. However, only 27% of employers offer this type of coverage.
As the mental health conversation gets louder, employers need to listen.
Along with the traditional vacation and sick leave policies, wellness leave is being added to paid time off packages. A relatively new concept in the corporate world, wellbeing days encourage employees to proactively address their health.
In this blog, we answer the question, “What is wellness leave?” We explain how it differs from sick leave and list five benefits of employee wellbeing you can expect when wellness is an organizational priority, not an afterthought.
What Is Wellness Leave?
Wellness leave, also known as “wellbeing days,” allows employees to take time away from work to reduce stress, manage mental health, or simply take a break to relax and rejuvenate. Wellbeing days are part of a broader workplace initiative to prioritize overall employee wellness.
Fewer wellbeing days are offered compared to other policies (often four per year), but this precious time off can have a significant benefit, not only to employees but to companies, which we’ll discuss later on.
It’s important to note that wellness leave doesn't necessarily indicate work is why an employee takes a health hiatus. It can be onset by a combination of life factors. For example, employees with children or ill family members may be working around the clock, and the need to step away is even more prominent.
Now that we’ve answered, “What is wellness leave?” let’s look at the difference between wellness leave vs. sick leave.
Wellness Leave vs. Sick Leave
At its core, wellness leave is preventative, while sick leave is reactive. Sick leave typically features doctor appointments and bed rest, while wellbeing days encourage employees to enhance their health before they get rundown.
Sick Leave
Purpose: Sick leave is intended for situations when an employee is unwell or dealing with a medical issue. It allows employees to take time off work when recovering from an illness, injury, or surgery.
Medical Certification: In many cases, employers may require a doctor's note or medical certification to verify the need for sick leave, especially if it extends for an extended period.
Paid or Unpaid: The availability of paid sick leave depends on an employer's policies, employment laws, and the terms of an employment contract. Many countries and states have laws requiring employers to provide a certain amount of paid sick leave.
Duration: Sick leave can be taken for a specific period, such as a day, a week, or longer, depending on the nature and severity of the illness.
Wellness Leave
Purpose: Wellness leave is designed to support an employee's overall wellbeing, including physical, mental, and emotional health. It can be used for self-care, relaxation, stress management, or any activity that promotes wellbeing.
No Medical Condition Required: Wellness leave doesn’t necessarily require a medical condition or doctor's certification. It’s often taken at the employee's discretion to prevent burnout, manage stress, or simply take a break.
Paid or Unpaid: The availability of paid wellness leave varies by employer and company policies. Some organizations offer paid wellness days as part of their benefits package, while others do not provide compensation for this type of leave. Unlike sick leave, wellbeing days aren’t required by law.
Flexibility: Wellness leave is typically more flexible and can be taken as needed. It doesn't always require the same level of notice as sick leave and can be used proactively to maintain wellbeing.
Individuals battling mental illnesses, in particular, may find wellbeing days essential to their mental health. Offering wellness leave can help reduce the stigma around mental health in the workplace and encourage more open and honest conversations.
Why Is Employee Wellness Important?
As you may have heard, “Sitting is the new smoking.” With so many desk jobs, work demands more mental than physical output. While remote work may be attractive to some, the lack of exercise can lead to a range of both mental and physical health issues:
Weight gain
Poor posture
Back pain
Stress
Anxiety
Depression
As a result, employees have found themselves burned out and ill from their jobs, decreasing productivity, work quality, and company morale. Let’s check out the benefits of employee wellbeing when prioritized by employers to counter these conditions.
Benefits of Employee Wellbeing
Health is wealth; when your employees are thriving, so is your business—the latter is also true. At ProMotion Corporate Wellness, clients hire our corporate wellness consultants to create wellness programs that deliver the five ROIs:
Culture/Morale: Employee wellbeing is the cornerstone of a positive workplace culture. When organizations prioritize their employees' health, it fosters a sense of belonging and commitment, creating a happier work environment.
Talent Attraction: Prospective employees value companies that care about their overall wellbeing, which can be hard to find. Corporate wellness programs make an organization more appealing to top talent.
Productivity: There’s a direct link between employee wellness and productivity. A healthy and happy workforce is more efficient, less absent, and consistently delivers their best work.
Mental Health: Wellness programs support mental health by addressing stress and promoting work-life balance. This fosters happier employees and reduces the stigma associated with seeking help.
Retention: Promoting employee wellness creates a work environment where employees want to stay because they feel supported. Reduced turnover saves on costs and leads to long-term business success.
Wondering how you can reap the benefits of employee wellbeing in your organization?
At ProMotion Corporate Wellness, we create highly engaged corporate wellness programs that deliver on the five ROIs. Book a free consultation to learn more about our High Performance Wellness Program Framework™ and how we can take your company from surviving to thriving.
