How Employers Can Support Remote Employees’ Health & Wellness
Many employers around the world are requiring their workforces to stay home. For some employees, working remotely means creating new healthy routines. Other employees have already carved out positive home-based habits. Employers can help both types of workers stay healthy and calm with exercise, meditation, and well-timed team challenges that can make them feel connected in these socially-distant times.
Encourage At-Home Physical Activity
When working at home, many employees find a distraction-free groove that keeps them productive. Sometimes they don’t realize they need to take a break from work and make time for physical activity.
Due to the social distancing recommendations and gyms being closed, your employees need to find new ways to workout at home, at a time most convenient for them. They can stay fit using Fitbit Premium. With Premium, your employees can access 150+ smart, adaptive workouts and choose from 15+different trainers. Activities run the gamut from cardio, dance, kickboxing, barre3, and HIIT to easier go-to activities such as yoga, strength conditioning, and mindfulness workouts.
And because we all need some good news right now, here’s the best part: Fitbit Health Solutions is now offering Premium for free through July 1, 2020.
Separating work life from home life and finding a routine can be stressful for remote workers, especially if they are trying to juggle work with childcare and homeschooling duties during the day. Remind your employees that exercise is a great way to relieve stress, whether it’s caused by a challenging project they are tackling or having bored teenagers at home.
Share New Ways to Fight Stress
During times of stress, mindfulness and meditation are great self-care techniques. Prioritizing mental health is one of the keys to creating a healthy workplace, at home or in an office.
While you may not be able to have in-person workshops right now, try to ensure that your remote employees learn some stress-relieving behaviors that they can do from home. You can introduce remote workers to these two guided programs:
- Guided breathing. Fitbit Relax provides guided breathing and offers 2, 5 or 10-minute breathing sessions that may help lower blood pressure, reduce stress and lessen anxiety.
- Better sleep. To improve sleep, Fitbit Premium provides Habits for Restful Sleep, a guided 2-week program that can help employees build better sleep habits. My favorite part of that program is the daily warm-up, a set of mindfulness activities to help power up the morning. Many people find that when they hit their sleep goals, their stress drops and they feel more productive.
Make Everyone Feel Like Part of the Team
With entire teams working remotely, some employees may feel like they are a bit isolated. In today’s work environment, dozens of collaboration tools are available to help remote employees feel included and connected to each other, and many of them are now free.
Employers can do simple things that add a personal touch. For instance, provide a way for everyone to participate in a virtual office party by phone or videoconference. Remembering them on birthdays and work anniversaries with care packages is another nice, personal way to remind them they are an important part of the team, even if they aren’t in the office.
One of the best team bonding activities are online challenges, which offer the perfect virtual playing field for everyone, regardless of their location. Launch a new Home Team challenge or two to add a dose of motivation. It may be just what your employees need during these high-stress months of social distancing.
For more insights on supporting remote employees’ health and fitness, watch the Fitbit Health Solutions webinar,Creating a Culture of Wellness.