Ways to Encourage Employees to Have Work-Life Balance

Promoting a healthy work-life balance is very important. Lately, work-life balance has become a buzzword among corporations and small businesses alike. Work-life balance is being able to juggle workplace stress with other daily pressures and responsibilities, such as family, friends, and one’s self. Our schedules are getting busier and busier, so it is important that we are able to save time for ourselves, our friends, and our family. According to pingboard.com, nowadays employees are demanding more control over their lives and a bigger say in the structure of their jobs. Companies are now emphasizing work-life balance in their job descriptions in order to attract talent since it is becoming more and more important for people.

So why is this? When employees are able to have more control and ownership over their own lives, they tend to perform better at work. They are able to leave personal issues at home when they come to work and they also tend to have better relationships with their managers. When an employee achieves a good work-life balance, they tend to be more productive because they are less likely to be stressed out. With that said, it is important for employers to encourage their employees to achieve a healthy work-life balance. The key is to offer different options since this is the best way to support a diverse staff. Here are some ways to do so:

Ask Around

Do you know how your employees are feeling? Are they having problems at home that may be affecting their performance at work? Managers and supervisors should make it a routine to check in with their employees at least once a month. If you are not aware of what is going on with your employees, you may not be able to help them out. Make sure you are communicating with them, and definitely ask them if there is anything the company can do to help them out.

Allow Your Employees to Work From Home

Depending on the industry you are in, this may or may not be a possibility. If it is possible, then it is an avenue you should highly consider exploring. I understand that this can potentially become a problem, as some employees may abuse this perk. In order to avoid this, it is a good idea to keep track of which employees are working from home and when, and maybe have a limit of days per quarter, even if employees are able to work from home for half of the day. By allowing your employees to work from home every now and then, you are showing them that you trust them.

Allow Employees to Take a Longer Lunch

Be flexible with this option. If employees are willing to come in a little early or leave a little late in order to be able to take a longer lunch, allow them to do so. This option will make it easier for your employees to run errands during their lunch, or even schedule appointments, without having to take PTO. Not only does this free up their evenings to focus on more enjoyable tasks, but it will even improve their productivity at work during the day.

Encourage Employees to Take Breaks

One of the biggest causes of burnout is not taking enough breaks at work. When someone is working nonstop, their brain gets tired and the person eventually burns out. These breaks don’t have to be structured by any means, but rather a few minutes here and there throughout the day to give their minds and bodies some rest. Encouraging your employees to take frequent breaks to hydrate, stretch, or use the restroom will ultimately improve their productivity and well help them feel less exhausted at the end of the day.

Have a Family-Friendly Culture

Getting families involved is an easy way to support employees’ work-life balance. You can have “bring your kid to work” days or host family lunches or family-friendly events. When you show your employees that you are invested in their personal lives, you’ll increase retention within your company rapidly. Furthermore, your employees will be able to spend more time with their families this way, thus allowing them to achieve a better work-life balance. Summer is approaching, so why not host a picnic at a park?

Having an online human resource software can also be a great way to help your employees have a healthy work-life balance. This is because when these employees are working from home, they can access their information or any company questions they may have by accessing the online employee self-service portal. Dominion's cloud-based HRM software allows employees to access the portal from anywhere they have internet access, including supervisors. This makes it easier to approve employees hours, and do complete other tasks while they are not in the office.

These are only some ways to help your employees achieve a good work-life balance. Always remember that in a fast-paced business, employees may forget to have this balance. By helping them achieve this, you will begin to see healthier and more productive employees and increased employee retention.