Give your employees rule space for better work-life balance

Mariëlle Visser, corporate social worker at Gimd

We see many employers struggling with high Sickness Absence of their employees due to poor work-life balance. How can you prevent this?

Business owners fear employee attrition

Investing in the well-being of your employees is hugely important to combat Sickness Absence . After all, Sickness Absence has a huge impact on entrepreneurs within SMEs. Interpolis' survey of 503 SMEs(conducted by Motivaction), shows that they fear long-term staff absence in the coming months.

Entrepreneurs saw a particular increase in frequent short-term Sickness Absence sence due to stress, private problems or conflicts during Covid-19. Looking ahead, one-fifth of entrepreneurs particularly fear an increase in long-term Sickness Absence due to psychological complaints.

Attention to work-life balance

I think it is especially important to pass along that it is necessary to keep paying attention to your employees. Engage with them and listen to the challenges they face. Often employees in SMEs are engaged and loyal. Do they continue to work at the end of the day or during breaks, especially now with working from home.

At the same time, during these times they may have to keep other balls in the air privately in addition to work. Children are at home and they may still be caretakers for a family member, friend or neighbor. To prevent employees from becoming overtired, losing their resilience and therefore calling in sick, it is good to make arrangements with each other.

1. Have confidence in your employees

Therefore, allow your employees rule space when necessary and trust that the work will get done. For example, it may be fine for someone to devote an hour to a personal situation during the day, but catch up later in the day or evening. By giving that space for a good work-life balance, employees don't feel trapped. That often relieves a lot of stress already and can prevent them from working themselves over the top.

As an employer, if you get involved, pay attention to your staff's stories, make good arrangements for working hours while also setting boundaries, it creates a lot of clarity and gives everyone just a little more stretch.

2. Good communication

Good communication and trust are hugely important within an organization. It creates a safe environment for employees. It lets them know they can tell their story to their manager. After all, employees also struggle with fears and, just like entrepreneurs, worry a lot: Will the company do well, or will I soon lose my job? Am I visible enough to my supervisor?

Many employees feel unbalanced because of the corona crisis. If an employee feels safe, he or she will want to have the conversation with you. Then you'll know sooner what's going on with an employee and you can take timely measures that can prevent downtime.

Tip: listen to this podcast with tips on working from home

3. Preventive assistance

The advantage of this difficult time is that we are all in the same boat. There is understanding and concern when a colleague or employee is not feeling well and can't get out on their own. Don't wait for the bucket to fill up, but enlist one of the interventions Gimd offers.

A corporate social worker is not just for situations where an employee has already dropped out. By providing preventive support, an employee can find a healthy work-life balance. Thus, by 2020, Gimd will have deployed 59% of services preventively.

4. Taking good care of yourself

Another tip I want to give employees is to take good care of themselves. And that as an employer you can contribute to that. For example, they can work the workday in blocks, allowing employees to focus on a task in a concentrated and safe manner, interspersed with breaks during which they can mindfully make a cup of coffee or peel an apple.

Exercise also helps, such as taking a lunch walk with a colleague to feel air and light and shift your focus. That increases job satisfaction, and that they you back in productivity, creativity and employee health.

Signals to employees

As an employer, do you notice behavioral changes in your employee? If so, be alert and start the conversation. Signs may include:

• Short fuse
• Working many extra hours
• Irritable
• Responding differently to emails
• Retreating

Need help as an entrepreneur?

As an employer, do you not know what to do with a particular work-life situation? Then I advise you to spar with experts. This could be an HR advisor or a company social worker if you work with one. Discuss what your options are for the employees in your company. Keep an eye out for each other.