WELLNESS & HEALTH AT THE
WORKPLACE
A “wellness culture at the workplace”
is more than just words: it is defined
not only by an array of programs that
encourage and support health and
wellness for employees—from stress
reduction to improved diet—but
also by physical and environmental
features such as better-quality, safe,
hygienic, healthy, cafeteria food and
pleasant, relaxing spaces for breaks and
relaxation. The benefits of a wellness
culture at workplace extend beyond
office walls and organizations that
build a wellness culture thus acquire
a workforce that is not only more
focused and engaged, but that sees that
culture as benefiting their careers.
Workplace stress remains a serious
problem in many workplaces and can
take a toll on their employee’s health
and productivity and may interfere
with their ability to pursue a healthy
lifestyle. A wellness culture magnifies
the benefits that employees gain
from their participation while driving
increased engagement, especially if
they offer a wide range of choices.
The cost of not building a wellness
culture—on employee happiness, stress
levels and, dramatically, engagement
with the employer’s mission and
goals. In addition, distinct differences
emerge as to what employers and
employees consider the most effective
approaches to wellness. Employers
place far greater emphasis on stress
management programs, for instance,
while employees are much more likely
to cite flexible work schedules.
On the other hand, from talent
acquisition and retention perspective,
the role of Human Resources in an
organization is to recognize the issue
of talent scarcity in the wellness
segment, namely as it relates to hiring
66 ILHA
and retaining skilled team members
capable of delivering internationally
benchmarked service at a luxury
standard. Given the intensely
intimate nature of health and wellness
services, securing the right talent is of
paramount importance in determining
long-term success. Thus, training and
long-term retention must be a high-
consideration when looking into this
aspect.
SUMMARY
Wellness is the state of optimal well-
being and starts with self-care. It’s
not simply the absence of illness, but
an improved quality of life resulting
from enhanced physical, social, mental,
emotional, spiritual and environmental
health. In the area of health and
wellness awareness; it all comes down
to a giant contemporary demand for
advancements in pro-active health.
There are many reasons why the
wellness industry is, and will continue
to expand. What is killing us today are
lifestyle diseases. The major causes
of early deaths have shifted from
infectious diseases to chronic lifestyle-
related conditions, 70 percent of which
are preventable through eating right,
exercise, supplementation and effective
stress management.
Bragging on social media about
wellness, health and lifestyle is the
new luxury statement and there has
been a major shift in the way we look
at our lives and in an “unconventional”
way. It’s about personal satisfaction
more than just a brag. Today there are
many social media and fitness tracking
applications that are emerging with a
thrust into our lives advocating new gen
lifestyle flair. People are following these
new trends greatly and widely across
age groups
with evolved
and matured
mindsets. So
when it comes
to selfie posts
and personal
photographs
(self-posing
or check ins)
It’s usually a
confluence of
health, body
image, peer
affirmation
and self-
actualization.
As millennials
craft their
social media
persona, body
image becomes
a primary
concern. 73
percent of
millennials
exercise to
enhance
their physical
appearance.
People who
post status updates about their diet
and exercise routine or travel diaries
appear to be more narcissistic and they
use Facebook and other fitness social
networks like H, Pump Up, Instagram
and Burn This to share their workout
selfies, to broadcast the effort they put
into their physical appearance.
It’s not simply overexposure but a new
trend towards an improved quality of
life resulting from enhanced physical,
social, mental, emotional, spiritual and
environmental health and it impacts
and influences everyone.