We’re in the midst of a key generational shift, and employee wellness programs aren’t keeping up.
By 2025, millennials and Gen. Z-ers will comprise the majority of the global workforce. For better or worse, these individuals didn’t come of professional age in the 20th-century workplace. As a result, these younger workers were never conditioned to withstand the rigors (and, let’s face it, injustices) of corporate politics; they never learned to “just stick it out” for their next pay raise or promotion.
Instead, millennials and Gen. Z-ers were raised from an early age to believe they mattered and deserved to be heard. They grew up in environments designed to make each individual feel truly unique and successful — and yet, paradoxically, they also grew up with the fear that they could be the next victim of senseless public violence. They saw their parents lose their jobs during the Great Recession. They’ve heard the warnings about Social Security disappearing and pension systems going bankrupt.
Taken together, these conditions gave millennials and Generation Z an overriding drive for self-actualization beyond simply earning a paycheck. And yet, employee engagement is often low among these younger workers. For example, a 2016 Gallup study found millennials were some of the least engaged of all workers. It follows, then, that millennials would garner a reputation for changing jobs frequently. And only half of 30-year-olds earn more than their parents did at their age, part of a long-term trend of downward mobility. In a 2016 study, Gallup found that less than 40 percent of millennials are “thriving” in at least one aspect of their well-being.
4 Ways to Build a Wellness Program That Resonates With Young Workers
Why are millennials and Gen. Z-ers so disengaged at work? What can employers do to attract and retain these talented employees?
Part of the problem is that many contemporary employee wellness programs don’t speak to young workers’ concerns. Millennials and Gen. Z-ers want employers to help them thrive at work, but few organizations are doing that.
To create a wellness program that appeals to younger workers — and gives them a reason to stick around — try these four tips:
1. Design Employee Wellness Programs that Focus on the Whole Person, Not Just Insurance Costs
Old-school employee wellness programs were often designed to help businesses save money by lowering the cost of insurance coverage. Because of that, traditional wellness programs tend to focus only on the physical health of the employee — sometimes, they even track employees’ wellness-related behaviors. While data can be used to benchmark, it doesn’t enable or encourage productive action and could cause increased stress among employees.
For your employees, well-being is about more than just their bodies. Give them a wellness program that speaks to all facets of their lives.
2. Stop Emphasizing Billable Requirements
Requirements for 100 percent utilization when it comes to billable hours (i.e., billing a minimum of forty hours a week) may look like a good way to increase profits. It might even work in the short term! But an exhausted worker costs their employer $1,200-3,200 per year in terms of declining job performance. The returns will diminish while the culture of long hours remains the same...
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