Why is remote employee wellness important?

1) To prevent employee burnout
When working remotely, it's easy for the boundary between work and home to blur. This leads to remote employees often working longer hours,, derailing their work-life balance. On the flip side, a common household chore (or even answering the door for a parcel delivery) can interrupt one’s focus. Ultimately, this affects productivity, causes higher stress levels, and leads to burnout. Ideally, if you share an office space, it's much easier to notice when your colleagues are struggling. However, because you're working in a remote setup, extra effort needs to be taken to ensure that your employees are healthy — mind and body.2) To avoid loneliness and isolation
Because employees don't get to work in an office environment, they can start to feel isolated and lonely, especially if they are extroverted personalities who gain their energy from being around people. Human beings are social creatures by nature The removal of social stimulation at the workplace can lead to an increase in stress levels, negatively affecting their emotional wellbeing.10 ways to promote wellness activities for remote employees
1. Create an online mental health toolkit

- Links to Employee Assistance Programs, wellness information websites that operate in your geographical location, information guides regarding benefits, disability coverage, and wellness day-offs.
- Links to online mental wellness forums and communities.
- A list of online therapy or e-therapy options.
- A list of applications that provide general information and help manage mental health and lifestyle.
- A list of chatbot services such as Wysa and Woebot that support people with mental health problems like depression and anxiety.
2. Set up virtual connection circles

3. Establish boundaries between work and personal time

4. Implement employee assistance programs

5. Incorporate employee wellness day-offs

6. Offer virtual wellness activities

- Providing access to online meditation and yoga sessions
- Hiring instructors to conduct live, guided sessions for your remote workforce.
- Offering memberships to popular mental and physical health wellness applications like Headspace, Calm, and Peloton.
- Sponsoring and live-streaming monthly seminars and interactive Q&A sessions on employee wellness topics like the importance of sleep, burnout, nutrition, etc.,
7. Provide reimbursement or subsidisation for employee fitness activities

8. Implement gamification strategies

- An employee can be given a ‘Social Butterfly’ award if he is able to find out the favourite hobbies of his colleagues (beyond his immediate team).
- Employees who regularly update their photo on the company portal can be given a ‘Photogenic’ award.
- Employees who are still clocked-in/active past official working hours can be awarded a ‘Burning the Midnight Oil’ badge.
9. Implement frequent employee check-ins

10. Set SMART and realistic goals
