International Week of Happiness at Work: How to create a happier workplace
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It is estimated we spend around 90,000 hours at work over the course of a lifetime – a figure that will rise and fall depending on individual circumstances.
Many of us are aware that we spend too much time working, but as long as staff are happy, surely that’s the key?
According to a 2023 Lanes Group Careers survey, just 35% of UK workers are very happy in their roles. And on a global scale, research by BambooHR revealed employee happiness has declined every year for the last four years.
Ensuring your workforce is upbeat and motivated, with workloads that are manageable and rewarding, will go a long way towards retaining key staff. But of course, a one-size-fits-all approach rarely works.
“Happiness is the result of living and working in alignment with our values,” says Penelope Jones, founder of My So-Called Career, a coaching and career development company for women. “So, to create a happier workplace, I would start with understanding what your team or employees value most, and then make more room for those things.”
Create connection
Post-pandemic, work has become increasingly transactional, with the connection and belonging that was once something we didn’t have to think about, now something we have to actively engineer, says Jones, adding that it’s something a lot of companies are doing badly.
“People who feel connected to their colleagues, and who feel they are seen at work as a whole person, are far more likely to report feeling happy and engaged.
“Make a point of being interested. Create conditions for curious conversations between colleagues. Ask how people are, how they like to work, what motivates them?
“Learning together and collaborating on projects can help people bond, as can participating in work adjacent activities like volunteering, special interest clubs or sports. Also, eating together promotes bonding, whether it’s a shared space for sandwiches or [organising] breakfast on a day when most people are in the office.”
Jones also thinks a more collaborative system works better for hybrid working. “Don’t make people come into the office only to sit on Zoom meetings with people who didn’t,” she says, suggesting time together should be used for work, as well as creating that all-important community.
Try holistic inclusivity
It’s 2024, and workers are demanding more when it comes to DEI and wellbeing.
Moving towards an inclusive and holistic approach, catering to diverse needs and offering a breadth of choice to tend not only to physical health, but mental, emotional and social wellbeing, is the way to go, says chartered psychologist Suzy Reading, author of Self-Care For Winter: Seven Steps For Thriving In The Colder Months, out September 26.
“Having the opportunity to steer wellbeing initiatives helps staff feel like they are heard and valued, and greater choice allows people to select the support that’s genuinely helpful,” she says.
Workplaces also have a duty of care toward employees, notes Jones, stating the importance of ensuring staff take downtime, book leave regularly, have time for personal development or learning, and switch off at the end of the day.
“Incentivise managers on their team taking all their leave,” suggests Jones. “Encourage participation in learning and development by offering discounts or funding, as well as making allowances with workload. Make it easy to access support services and normalise using them, and encourage scheduling the sending of emails, so they arrive within working hours, and people feel able to switch off.”
Be more flexible
Flexibility is key, especially for parents and carers. “Flexible working practices allow people to better meet the other demands they face, reducing stress levels, while also being able to work with their own natural rhythms, enhancing their performance,” says Reading.
“Flexible working helps people maintain their health and wellbeing, not only facilitating better enjoyment from their work life, but career longevity.”
While offering flexible working is necessary – and new laws mean employees can request it from day one – there is often still a stigma, and an emphasis on presenteeism in many offices.
According to the Office for National Statistics, three in four mothers with dependent children (75.6%) are in work in the UK (the highest level in the equivalent quarter over the last 20 years) and over nine in 10 (92.1%) fathers with dependent children are also in work – so parents and carers form a huge swathe of the workforce.
Keep workloads varied
Variety is the spice of life, and often makes for a more enjoyable work experience.
“I tend to meet women who are feeling very overwhelmed or very underwhelmed with work, and often at the heart of that, is work that has become one dimensional,” says Jones, advising businesses to ensure everyone has access to a range of working styles, project types and intensities.
“High pressure, intense, deadline driven and meeting heavy has become way too much of a default,” she continues. “Perform an audit of how your team is working over a period of time and set a challenge to mix it up. This could mean adjusting deadlines or resourcing to lessen intensity, but also thinking about introducing walking meetings, more collaborative working styles, using different tools or building cross functional teams, so people have experience of different approaches.
Communicate better
Since the pandemic, hybrid working is fairly commonplace, with many businesses allowing staff to work from home at least some of the time. However, when location allows for barriers in communication, more needs to be done to bridge that gap, notes Reading.
“With flexible hours and remote working practices, more communication is occurring virtually,” she says.
“Training to help develop skills in virtual communication helps to reduce the potential stress involved, as well as decrease the risk of virtual burnout. Exploring policies around boundaries with communication can establish reasonable work hours and demands, helping people feel comfortable switching off, allowing them to develop a compassionate, sustainable pace.”
Address inequality with urgency
Over 16 million women aged 16 and over are in employment, according to the ONS UK Labour Force Survey. Reading believes it’s high time businesses focus on women in the workplace, and pay more attention to female health.
“Understanding the complex interplay of factors affecting the health of working women is crucial,” she says. “Addressing the gender gap in pay and employment opportunities is key for financial wellbeing. And gender-sensitive approaches to health promotion could better support women through their unique hormonal health issues, including PMDD, menopause, endometriosis and PCOS.
“Feeling understood and supported is crucial for our mental health,” she adds.
Recognise and reward your staff
“Having our contribution seen, celebrated and rewarded works wonders,” concludes Jones. “It doesn’t have to be huge or performative, but instead, think about genuine, meaningful ways to let people know you appreciate them. Say thank you – either publicly (perhaps via a dedicated slack channel for the purpose) or privately. Mark milestones and achievements within teams and groups, and send cards or notes.
“Use your position to amplify the work of people below you.”
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