A lot of employers in the UK are keen to focus more on the physical and mental wellbeing of their staff and signed up to take part in a free initiative, Britain’s Healthiest Company, which has been running since 2013. Whilst it was great for various businesses to participate, some of the results that were returned could have caused some concern, with 87% of respondents having a vitality age greater than their actual age.

From around 32,500 participants taking part the results showed that 11.9% took part in 7 or more exercise sessions per week, 17.6%, an average of 3 exercise sessions per week, whilst 13.5% didn’t do any exercise at all!! Exercise is just one part of a healthy lifestyle with diet and mental wellbeing also playing a key factor.

With problems such as stress and depression resulting in more than 15 million sick days per year in the UK alone it is vital for business owners to take the health and wellbeing of its employees seriously. Results from the initiative show that 87% of employee worries are caused by work related stress.

Mental wellbeing is just as important as physical health and should be a key consideration. Preventing the cause of stress in the workplace by communicating with staff is key. Make sure all staff are happy and that they feel comfortable enough discussing any issues they may have with a senior member of staff. This can reduce the amount of absence from work.

By business owners understanding the health risks that employees face, they can take positive action to help reduce absence rates, and in turn increase employee engagement and improve productivity as a result.

Companies in the UK can register their interest in taking part in Britain’s Healthiest Company 2016 by visiting the website.

Britain’s Healthiest Company 2015 Results:

Healthiest Company

Johnson & Johnson (large)

Adidas (medium)

Old Mutual (small)

Healthiest Workplace:

Johnson & Johnson (large)

Adidas (medium)

Lindt & Sprungli (small)

Healthiest Employees:

Microsoft (large)

Sweaty Betty (medium)

Sanofi Pasteur MSD (small)