The WellRight Blog

What happens when “hustle culture” gives way to prolonged work hours, maxed-out workloads, and extensive burnout?

You end up with employees “quiet quitting,” or doing the bare minimum amount of work to get by and maintain a better work-life balance.

While many younger employees are starting to give a name to their rising disengagement at work, you may be surprised to learn that quiet quitting didn’t originate on TikTok. 

In fact, the idea as we know it was even referenced as early as 1999, when we saw evidence of quiet quitting in the cult classic, Office Space.

Back-to-school season is officially in full swing, which means many of your parent employees are reshaping their daily routines, tapping in as homework guides, and trying to figure out when graphing calculators became so expensive.

This time of year is a period of adjustment and anxiety for many working parents. Not only are your employees having to reshuffle standing summer meetings, but they’re also excited (and nervous) about their kids returning to the classroom.

To accommodate overworked parents, companies need to provide flexible and supportive work environments that can adapt to the evolving needs of employees.

Over the last few years, the concept of an “ideal” workplace has started taking shape in the minds of employees. Now, workers are looking to have more agency over their preferred work environments than ever before.

For employers, that can be good news and bad news.

What’s the difference between a 63-year-old employee worried about retirement savings and a 22-year-old employee suffering from depression?

Nothing. Not according to many wellness programs, anyway.

And that spells trouble for employers.

Companies witnessed employees leaving in droves during last year’s “Great Resignation.” In 2022, we’re now entering a “Great Reshuffle,” where employee retention is improving and workers are no longer leaving the workforce. Instead, they’re reassessing their current roles in search of more fulfilling pursuits, like starting their own businesses, finding better pay or more flexibility in a similar job, or making a career change altogether.

At the heart of it all is a job shift where work is starting to collide with personal values and life choices.

Many employers have started addressing this issue by offering more financial perks: higher pay, bigger signing bonuses, upskilling opportunities, and other solutions.

But it hasn’t worked as well as they’ve hoped.

Uncertainty.

If we had to pick one word to describe how employers and employees feel about work and workplace wellness, that would be it. Uncertainty about the future, job security, physical safety, finances, and an overall sense of belonging in an increasingly remote world.

Today’s employees want safety and security in their workplace, and they want to feel supported by their employers.

We talk a lot about managing the mental health of employees, but what about the mental health of managers in your organization?

After all, they’re also employees, and with the challenges they have to deal with, it should come as no surprise that managers are struggling just as much as the people they lead.

Employee wellness platforms are most valuable if they’re flexible and can adapt as your company goals and employee needs evolve over time. Just because a platform has all the bells and whistles doesn’t mean it will still be relevant in five years—or even one year.

Among the essential factors to consider when choosing a corporate wellness platform is the ability to integrate with additional health and well-being partners. The more seamlessly you can integrate your platform with other solutions your business will need, the more effective your wellness program will be.

Financial wellness has become a hot topic for employees, particularly women.

A 2021 financial wellness survey found that women are more concerned about their finances than men—and it’s not just because women earn less than men do.

While June is LGBTQ+ Pride Month, we’ve reached the point where companies must move beyond simply showing support for one month with messaging, media, and products.

Consider this month the opportunity to begin making LGBTQ+-affirming practices an inherent and essential part of your organization year-round.

But to do that, companies need a culture shift.