5 Ways to Improve the Health of Your Employees

If there was ever any question about the importance of employee health and well-being, it must be clear by now that all employers should rank this among their top corporate priorities.

Why? Your company’s workforce is one of its most valuable business assets. Healthy, engaged employees drive performance, innovation, and resilience. But if team members are chronically stressed, burned out, or feel undervalued, productivity can plummet—alongside morale, retention, and even your bottom line.

By contrast, employers who actively prioritize employee well-being often see higher engagement, stronger loyalty, and improved workplace culture. Workers who feel seen and supported are not only more likely to stay, but they also tend to bring their best selves to work each day. That’s because workers respond favorably to this concern and are motivated to stick around and be more productive on the job.

Impactful Strategies To Boost Employee Wellness

Reevaluate and Expand your Paid Time Off (PTO) Policy

Employee burnout is rampant in many industries, and rigid time-off policies only exacerbate the issue.To help mitigate that risk, it might be time to re-evaluate your PTO policy to ensure it is flexible enough to meet employee needs. Now more than ever, companies must provide flexible and generous PTO options that allow employees to recharge without guilt or logistical hurdles. 

Whether it’s offering unlimited PTO, increasing existing leave allocations, or simply ensuring employees feel encouraged to use their time off, the goal is to create a culture where rest is seen as a necessary and respected part of work life—not a luxury. You and your executive team should also encourage employees to take PTO to “recharge their batteries” on a regular basis. (The same goes for CEOs and business leaders themselves.)

Action Step: Schedule regular reminders throughout the year, especially after busy seasons, encouraging teams to take time off. Some companies even shut down entirely for a “company-wide reset week.”

Address Stress Levels in the Workplace

Excessive stress doesn’t just harm employee mental health—it also increases the risk of physical illness, disengagement, and attrition. Common workplace stressors include unrealistic deadlines, micromanagement, poor communication, outdated tools, and lack of recognition.

To combat these, conduct regular wellness check-ins and anonymous surveys. Create open channels for feedback and, more importantly, act on what you learn. Consider offering mental health resources such as:

• Paid “mental health days”

• Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs)

• Free or discounted therapy services

• Meditation or breathing workshops

• Access to mindfulness and wellness apps like Headspace or Calm

Action Step: Normalize conversations about mental health by having leadership participate in wellness initiatives and share their own strategies for managing stress.

Promote Physical Health and Nutrition

Our bodies were not made to sit at desks all day—and our minds suffer when our bodies aren’t active. Encourage employees to get moving by providing:

• Standing desks or ergonomic chairs

• Incentives for walking or biking to work

• Group fitness challenges or step competitions

• Subsidized gym memberships or on-site classes

As for nutrition, small changes go a long way. Offering healthy snacks, filtered water stations, or catered lunches with nutritious options sends the message that employee health matters. You can also host:

• Lunchtime webinars with registered dietitians

• “Healthy potluck” days

• Recipe swaps or digital cookbooks featuring staff favorites

Action Step: Launch a voluntary “Wellness Wednesday” tradition where team members share health tips or lead short movement sessions.

Encourage Employee Break-Time

Short, regular breaks are proven to improve focus, creativity, and emotional well-being. Still, many employees feel tethered to their desks out of fear of appearing unproductive.

Make it clear—both in word and practice—that stepping away is not only allowed, it’s encouraged. This could mean designating quiet “recharge zones,” implementing meeting-free time blocks, or even scheduling group walks or informal coffee chats.

Action Step: Try the “52-17” rule—52 minutes of focused work followed by a 17-minute break—as a starting point for your team.

Lead By Example

You can’t expect employees to engage in more healthy work and life habits if you aren’t doing so yourself. Remember, employees look to the CEO or business owner to model the desired workplace behavior. When they see you taking a short break from work, participating in physical activity, eating more nutritious meals, they will likely take up the challenge themselves. Everyone wins!

Employee well-being has become an increasingly high priority among employers of choice when it comes to company culture. These are also the organizations that talented job-seekers are drawn to, because of their clear-cut emphasis on health and wellness. Anything that adds to your recruitment and retention efforts is well worth the time and resources required.

Action Step: Create a “Wellness Leadership Council” where department heads brainstorm and share ideas for modeling positive habits and supporting their teams’ well-being.

Want to learn more? Read “Healthy Work-Life Balance Can Boost Employee Retention.”

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The companies that will attract and retain top talent in the years ahead are those that treat wellness not as an afterthought, but as a core business strategy. When you invest in the physical, mental, and emotional health of your workforce, you’re not just improving lives—you’re building a healthier, more resilient, and ultimately more successful organization.

A thriving team leads to a thriving business. Make employee well-being a non-negotiable—and watch the ripple effects of that decision transform your culture for the better.