Workwell | Corporate Wellness

Chair corporate massage reduces stress levels, offers a feeling of wellness and increases collaboration within the group. It carries a strong feeling of recognition and appreciation towards your employees.

For You

Massage for thousands of years now benefits both our body and spirit. It is integrally connected to our wellbeing.

For your Team

Corporate massage can increase your team’s performance as well as nurture a feeling of belonging.

For your Company

Corporate massage costs can be included in the company’s Operational Costs (OPEX)

Media-Saturn Group

640 Employees / 11 Points 4 Days / Athens-Larisa-Thessaloniki

‘’They offered 12’ of rejuvenating dry massage sessions without oil, in each one of us, in the meeting rooms we provided them. In combination with the energy drinks and special food mixtures they offered us at the end, they left each receiver perfectly happy, rejuvenated and in a really good mood’’

‘’The implementation methodology had an amazing flow, it anticipated for every possible detail and it was also flexible enough to adjust to our own particularities and rules. They were consistent, organized and handled professionally the project that we assigned them. Hygiene levels were high and the overall organization required little of our own time.’

Lara Kalfa / HR Director

OTE – Cosmote Group

1200 Workers / 6 Points / 4 Days / Athens

‘’They responded to our every request with great willingness and flexibility in the intensive program, they showed absolute adaptability to different audiences and cultures, and thanks to their communication skills they won all the employees.’’

‘’In the few minutes of break time for the workers in the Call Centers, Mark and John worked intensively and with great quality thereby giving really valuable moments of wellness to our employees, which was recorded on the assessment form completed afterwards.’’

‘’We believe that the opportunity will be given for a new cooperation – particularly in the context of Internal Communication programs – for the OTE Group employees, as a request has already been made for the resumption of a Wellness program with our partners Mark and John.’’

Maria Xenios / Head of Internal Communications

We have a series of delicious and beneficial suggestions that will accompany and supplement your people’s experience. Our focus is exclusively on super-foods and antioxidant mixes that boost your mood and increase your energy levels.

Our goal is to educate you about methods that promote physical and mental wellness as well as new ways of diet. If we influence your nutritional habits positively, we will also help you change your daily routine. Changing your daily routine helps improve your body’s energy reserves, boost your mental power and consequently increase your productivity.

These are the signs that you’re suffering from Burnout at Work

It’s normal to feel stressed at work from time to time. But for some people, the stress becomes all-consuming, leading to exhaustion, cynicism and hatred towards your job. This is known as burnout. Burnout used to be classified as a problem related to life management, but last week the World Health Organisation re-labelled the syndrome as an “occupational phenomenon” to better reflect that burnout is a work-based syndrome caused by chronic stress. Source: World Economic Forum The newly listed dimensions of burnout are: Feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion Increased mental distance from one’s job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism related to one’s job Reduced professional efficacy (work performance). In the era of smartphones and 24-7 emails, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to switch off from the workplace and from those who have power over us. The new definition of burnout should be a wake-up call for employers to treat chronic stress that has not been successfully managed as a work health and safety issue. How do you know if you’re burnt out? If you think you might be suffering burnout, ask yourself the following questions: 1. has anyone close to you asked you to cut down on your work? 2. in recent months have you become angry or resentful about your work or about colleagues and clients? 3. do you feel guilty that you are not spending enough time with your friends, family or even yourself? 4. do you find yourself becoming increasingly emotional, for example crying, getting angry, shouting, or feeling tense for no obvious reason? If you answered yes to any of these questions, it might be time for change. If you think you’re suffering burnout, the first step is to talk to your line manager or workplace counsellor. Many workplaces now also have confidential external psychologists as part of their employee assistance programme. What causes burnout? We all have different levels of capacity to cope with emotional and physical strains. When we exceed our ability to cope, something has to give: the body becomes stressed if you push yourself either mentally or physically beyond your capacity People who burn out often feel a sense of emotional exhaustion or indifference, and may treat colleagues, clients or patients in a detached or dehumanised way. They become distant from their job and lose the zeal for their chosen career. They might become cynical, less effective at work, and lack the desire for personal achievement. In the long term, this is not helpful for the person or the organisation. While burnout isn’t a mental health disorder, it can lead to more serious issues such as: family breakdowns, chronic fatigue syndrome, anxiety, depression, insomnia, and alcohol and drug abuse. Related Articles 7 Meaningful Steps to Reduce Stress & Tension in Your Office Eight Ideas to Reduce Employee Stress for Free

10 Data Based Benefits of Employee Wellness Programs You Need to Know About

Employee wellness programs seem to offer obvious benefits. There’s general well-being of course, plus health, happiness…and the pursuit of more happiness? In other words, it can be surprisingly hard to articulate any concrete benefits of employee wellness programs, especially from a business standpoint. However, that’s exactly what you need to do if you want to make a solid case for a program you’ve been thinking about implementing. Source Fail to make a solid argument as an HR Professional, and your proposal to key decision makers could merit responses like these: “Sure, wellness programs for employees looks fun and sounds like a good idea, but do they really offer any benefits?” “Wellness programs don’t actually work; companies only implement them to have good talking points for annual reports.” “Why implement a program designed to achieve a concept as abstract as wellness?” But don’t you give up just yet—you’re about to get all the information you need to craft a water-tight response to those questions and others. We’ve pulled together a list of compelling anecdotal evidence on the benefits of employee wellness programs. Based on a range of criteria, from financial strategy to employee retention, we conclude that employee wellness programs definitely deserve your company’s attention and investment. You can use our evidence-based list to make an irresistible case that might just turn your aspirations for employee wellness programs into realities. Benefit # 1: Employee wellness programs increase healthy behaviour and curb the risk of lifestyle-related disease. The evidence: In the conclusion of a Workplace Wellness Programs Study Report published by Rand Health Quarterly, researchers write: Consistent with prior research, we find that lifestyle management interventions as a component of a wellness program can reduce risk factors, such as smoking, and increase healthy behaviors, such as exercise. We find that these effects are sustainable over time and clinically meaningful. This result is of critical importance, as it confirms that workplace wellness programs can help contain the current epidemic of lifestyle-related diseases, the main driver of premature morbidity and mortality as well as health care cost in the United States. The report suggests that wellness programs can have a significant positive effect on employees’ health—and their lives. This might not sound like a big deal, but it’s actually a major accomplishment, a testament to the power of employee wellness programs. From a public health perspective, health behaviour change is difficult to accomplish. If employee wellness programs can motivate long-term behaviour change, then they hold far more value than traditional, less effective, health interventions focused on individual willpower. Case in point: Employee wellness programs could be the key to achieving long-term health. Short Conclusion: A well-executed employee wellness program can actually make our employees healthier in the long run. If we implement a program and document the results, we’ll have another compelling employee benefit that attracts and keeps incredible talent. The benefits of healthy employees is something not to be looked over. Benefit # 2: Employee wellness programs increase engagement. The evidence: In a report conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit and sponsored by Humana, researchers write: Most critically for employers, however, the EIU research offers striking evidence that wellness programmes align employer and employee goals more closely. They increase employee engagement with the company’s mission and goals. Employees are also more likely to see their own wellness as being linked with professional success. Companies that build a wellness culture thus acquire a workforce that is not only more focused and engaged, but that sees that culture as benefiting their careers. Short Conclusion: Evidence suggests employee wellness programs could boost employee engagement and the tremendous benefits of employee engagement leads to improved retention and productivity. Plus, an employee wellness program engages and benefits employees outside of the office, so they’re more likely to feel that their job has a positive impact on multiple aspects of their lives, and they’ll be more likely to stay with us long-term. That means this program could also reduce our recruiting, hiring, and training costs over time. Benefit # 3: Employees want wellness programs. The evidence: Experts from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health analyzed surveys to determine the overall perceptions of wellness programs from employee and employer perspectives. Their data analysis revealed that about 59.4% of employees think employers should attempt to improve the health of their workers. What does this statistic really indicate? It indicates that popular opinion supports the idea of corporate involvement in our health. As more companies adopt wellness programs, the number of employees demanding them will likely increase. Companies can stay ahead of demand by developing wellness methodologies and infrastructure now. This proactive strategy avoids scrambling to develop a worthwhile program when employee wellness matures into a must-have benefit. Short Conclusion: We can use our employee wellness program as a recruitment tool. Evidence suggests that employees want their employers to take an active role in their health, so if we can show potential employees that we’re invested in their well-being, we’ll gain an advantage over companies offering only bare-bones benefits. Benefit # 4: Well-being increases adaptability. The evidence: Top researchers at Gallup found that employees who are engaged at work and also experience high levels of well-being were 45% more likely than other employees to adapt to change. Instant communication tools, globalization, shifting responsibilities, and tons of other factors necessitate adaptability in employees at all companies, the big and the small. Programs that boost adaptability stand to benefit any organization. Adaptable employees don’t waste time freaking out about changes; they simply take a breath and rise to the occasion. Adaptable employees don’t need bosses to outline the steps they need to take; they simply jump in and get the job done. Short Conclusion: We need to increase our roster of adaptable employees, people who can roll with the punches and shift with changing responsibilities, and it turns out, adaptability can be cultivated. By implementing an employee wellness program, we can help our most engaged employees adapt to change, increasing their performance and reducing their stress levels. Benefit #5: Specialised wellness programs provide a solid return on investment. The evidence: The Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) performed a systematic review of programs that featured health risk assessments with feedback and health education. They found that for every dollar invested in health intervention, employees recouped between $1.40 and $4.60 in avoided medical costs and productivity losses. Short Conclusion: A systematic literature review from a panel of expert public health specialists suggest that we’ll save more on medical costs and productivity losses than we’ll spend on a solid employee wellness program. Implementing the program could leave us better off than we were before; it could actually save us money. Benefit #6: Employee wellness programs boost productivity. The evidence: According to a study published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, when employees leveraged wellness programs to make lifestyle changes, they ended up saving their companies about $353 in recouped productivity—productivity they gained as a result of their newfound wellness. Short Conclusion: An employee wellness program could save us money in lost productivity. Respected studies indicate we could save as much as $353 per person, per year. We have 571 employees, so an employee wellness program could save us around $201,563 a year. Benefit #7: Employee wellness programs could elevate company culture. The evidence: A Virgin Pulse study found that 85% of employers believed their successful wellness program had a positive influence on company culture. Company culture comprises tons of variables, and many of them are challenging, if not impossible, to pinpoint. That’s why connecting an uptick in positive culture with a specific action is so significant. Short Conclusion: Evidence suggests that an employee wellness program could benefit our company culture, and our surveys indicate that our employees are looking for improvements in that area. An employee wellness program could give employees exactly what they want. Benefit #8: Employee wellness programs could boost market valuation. The evidence: In another report published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, researchers concluded that: This study supports prior and ongoing research demonstrating a higher market valuation—an affirmation of business success by Wall Street investors—of socially responsible companies that invest in the health and well-being of their workers when compared with other publicly traded firms. The researchers caution that the link between the wellness programs and market valuation is neither direct or immediate, but they encourage companies to make long-term plans and investments to develop truly effective programs that may one day benefit stock performance. Short Conclusion: Some studies connect outstanding financial performance to outstanding wellness programs. Wellness programs take time. If we ever hope to cultivate the kind of wellness programs that could infiltrate every aspect of our company and improve our overall performance, then we need to start planning and implementing now. Benefit #9: Employee wellness programs bring employees together and build camaraderie. The evidence: By their very nature, employee wellness programs depend on the participation of multiple employees. So no matter what kind of program you choose, it’s guaranteed to bring employees together on some level. Wellness programs involve shared goals and struggles and maybe even group meetings, support groups. and fitness activities. As employees work on improving their health together, bonding and camaraderie will follow. Short Conclusion: Employees cite “lack of communication in the workplace” as a company problem in our surveys year after year. Implementing an employee wellness program will get people working together toward the same goal—outside of their usual work responsibilities. This would definitely improve company communication, and it would support good health at the same time. Benefit #10: Employee wellness programs focused on meditation could reduce stress. The evidence: Develop an employee wellness program focused on mindfulness, and you could notice a major reduction in workplace stress. According to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, meditation might help improve anxiety, stress, and depression. If you’re thinking about implementing a meditation-centric wellness program, then you’re in luck; meditation is a relatively inexpensive and fuss-free art to practice. If you have a light budget, you might be able to implement an employee wellness program using just one quiet conference room and some free guided mindfulness meditations. Short Conclusion: A majority of workers in a diverse array of jobs report facing lots of work-related stress. It’s safe to say that many of our co-workers feel stress as a result of things they encounter on the job. Stress isn’t just unhealthy for individuals, but it’s also unhealthy for our company as a whole; it leads to unnecessary sick days, increased work errors, and generally lower productivity. We could improve multiple aspects of our company performance by offering a wellness program aimed at reducing workplace stress. Main Conclusion Addressed to the HR Department We hope this list provided all the benefits and validation you need to fight for the employee wellness program you want to implement for your company. In addition to familiarising yourself with evidence to support your program, we recommend putting together a detailed plan for the program you will be proposing! Why? Once you guide the Top Management on the benefits of your program in general, they’re going to have a lot of questions on the specific details. Be sure to have a detailed budget that outlines the different costs associated with your proposed program. Top Management will likely bring up workflow as well. They’ll want to know if they need to hire new staff just to manage this program. This is where companies like WorkWell step in! We are particularly good in providing Turn-Key Solutions as your Contractor!

9 Ways to Reduce Plastic in your Workplace

Businesses of all sizes are well-placed to make a HUGE difference when it comes to tackling the ocean plastic crisis. Whilst individual efforts to use less plastic add up over time, cutting plastic usage at a business-level results in significantly greater reductions in plastic waste and far-reaching consequences – creating a ripple effect of positive change among colleagues, customers, suppliers, competitors, industry and the wider community. Source Given the devastation being caused in the oceans by our excessive plastic use, we urgently need more businesses to step up to this challenge… In 2015, we produced over 320 million tonnes of plastic globally – which is more than the combined weight of every human alive on earth today! Based on our current usage, global plastic production is set to double over the next 20 years – unless we collectively change our course. At this point, it’s important to realise that we have no effective means of getting rid of this durable material that we’re using and discarding as if there’s no tomorrow. The vast majority of plastic ever made has gone to landfill or escaped into our environment. We can’t recycle our way out of this mess because our current recycling infrastructure is not fit for purpose. Just 9% of plastic ever produced has been recycled and today much of the Western world’s recycling is simply shipped overseas and dumped in countries that lack the facilities to deal with it. Whilst innovation and initiatives such as the Bottle Deposit Return Scheme will hopefully increase recycling rates and make the circular economy part of the solution in the future, we need urgent damage-limiting action to protect our oceans TODAY. With a truckload of plastic entering our oceans every minute, the most efficient thing we can do is to learn to use significantly less plastic in the first place. You can make a real difference to the ocean plastic crisis by committing to use less plastic in your workplace. Using less plastic in the workplace is not rocket science. It simply requires investing some time and effort to review how much plastic waste you currently generate and also commitment at all levels to rethink how you do things to minimise your company’s plastic footprint. What about Greece? Please don’t be mislead here because Greece is not surrounded by Oceans. It’s all part of a bigger picture and we also have our own local issues to handle. In Greece only 16% of trash is recycled, compared with the EU’s average of 44%. Nearly everything else ends up buried in trash dumps. At Fyli, the country’s largest landfill on the outskirts of Athens, the site’s environmental officer, Ioanna Kapsimali says: “Plastic is the most difficult material, given its chemical composition,” she said, noting that it’s so light it can be blown away by the wind and end up in the sea. “That happens with quite a large amount [of plastic]. It causes problems because the plastic breaks up and is ingested by fish, birds, and other animals.” The EU plans to make all plastic packaging on the market recyclable by 2030, and wants member states to crack down on single-use plastic, with consumers using no more than 40 lightweight plastic bags annually by 2025. A few countries have already zoomed past that target: Finns on average use just four plastic bags a year. But in Greece we use 296 bags per year, according to the EU Commission. So where do you start? 1. Inspire your colleagues, hold an ocean plastic talk The first step is education – your colleagues need to care about the issue in order to want to do something about it. Thanks to Blue Planet 2 and recent high-profile media coverage, many of your colleagues may already care very much about the state of the oceans and will be heartened to see your business taking action. However, many may still require more inspiration or information to motivate them to make changes. Why not hold a talk about ocean plastic in your workplace? You could either get someone internal who is passionate about the problem to share their concerns or invite an external expert to come and inspire your team with first-hand stories of the devastation that plastic pollution is causing to our natural environment and to share insights and practical strategies to use less plastic in their personal lives and professional roles. Alternatively, you could arrange a screening of an inspirational film such as Plastic Oceans or Trashed to start a wave of change within your organisation and persuade your colleagues to rethink their plastic usage. 2. Organise a park or beach clean with your team One of the best ways to get people engaged with the issue is to let them see for themselves the scale of the problem. Nothing beats first-hand experience – seeing and taking on board that the plastic we all use in our everyday lives spills out into parks, countryside, rivers and oceans – even when we think we have disposed of it responsibly. When plastic escapes into our environment it’s not simply due to littering, it is down to inappropriate and excessive use of plastic by manufacturers and retailers. This is likely to include your organisation too. We have all been part of the problem and we can all take responsibility to play a part in finding solutions. A team clean-up is a great way to bond by doing something meaningful together and it will help focus your organisation’s plastic reduction efforts too. 3. Provide unlimited filtered tap water Single-use plastic water bottles are among the most common items we find washed up on the beautiful beaches near our home in South Devon. Globally we get through a million plastic bottles a minute – a statistic that is both mind-boggling and devastating, especially given that in many countries today the tap water is safe, free and more regulated than the bottled water industry. Show you’re serious about reducing plastic in your workplace by installing a mains-fed filtered water cooler or by putting a water filter on the office kitchen tap. Filtered tap water tastes better and is healthier than bottled water. If you promote the fact you offer free, unlimited water refills in your workplace, your colleagues will ditch their disposable water bottles and switch to refilling reusable bottles instead. 4. Have reusables in kitchens & canteens There’s no place for disposable plastic cutlery, plates and cups in modern businesses or societies. We now know that with plastic, there is no such thing as ‘away’. A single-use plastic utensil is useful for minutes yet will stay in our environment for centuries – harming or killing wildlife, polluting our oceans and damaging our eco systems. It’s much better to opt for reusable, washable serveware that can be used again and again, or encourage colleagues to bring their own (plates, cups, bowls, cutlery, lunchboxes, etc.) and provide facilities for washing them after use. 5. Reduce plastic in office tea and coffee – big topic in Greece Whilst it might be impossible to completely eliminate plastic from office tea and coffee making, there are steps you can take to minimise it which add up over time to a massive reduction in the plastic waste generated by your workplace. Place sugar in glass jars and use a spoon instead. Mix it with single use wooden sticks. Did you know that most tea bags have plastic in them? You can enjoy a plastic-free brew by offering loose leaf tea (plenty of exceptional Chamomile and Mountain tea in Greece). As for coffee, offer freshly roasted coffee beans also in glass jars or tins of coffee. Finally, it goes without saying that it pays to have reusable mugs and spoons and a place for them to be washed up. When you think about how many cups of tea and coffee you and your team consume in a year, you’ll realise that this is an area where some small changes will really count! We are happy to say that nearly all of WorkWell’s clients really do implement point 5 already! 6. Encourage eco habits, gift reusables to your team If you have budget, a great way to set the tone is to gift your whole team with a key reusable item, such as a water bottle, coffee cup or lunchbox – whatever you think they would most appreciate. There is also the option to brand these, if appropriate. Alternatively, you could wait to gift team members with reusables individually when it’s their birthday or to recognise good work. Giving reusables as gifts (both at work and in your personal life) is a great way to encourage eco habits among people who may not have got around to buying key reusable items for themselves yet and would appreciate a little nudge to help them reduce their reliance on single-use plastic. 7. Ask your team for ideas to cut plastic in their roles The people with the best insights into exactly how to cut plastic usage in your workplace are your team. They are the ones who know the biggest sources of plastic waste in your business. They may need a little prompting at first, to open their eyes to the damage that disposable plastic is causing so they understand WHY you want to use less plastic, and also encouragement to rethink HOW your business uses plastic – but once they get their thinking caps on they are sure to come up with some brilliantly creative solutions and ideas for doing things differently. For example in Marketing, instead of using balloons or cheap disposable promotional materials, consider investing in reusable bunting or fewer, higher quality yet more useful promotional items such as branded reusable water bottles or coffee cups. Making consistent reductions in your plastic usage over time adds up to make a big difference. 8. Request that suppliers use less plastic packaging Many organisations feel helpless when it comes to the amount of plastic packaging that is delivered into their business from suppliers on a daily basis. However, as the client, you have more sway than you realise, especially in the current climate when many are taking to social media to share shocking pictures of excessive and pointless plastic packaging. To keep relations positive, the best approach is to draft a formal letter explaining your objectives to cut your business plastic footprint, with guidelines of how you would prefer to receive your deliveries in future. One side-benefit of receiving less plastic in your deliveries is that you will save money on your business waste costs. Another is that by speaking up and requesting that your suppliers address this issue, you’re likely to cause a ripple effect through the supply chain as the positive changes that are made to meet your requests impact other suppliers, clients and competitors too. 9. Share your successes, inspire others to act too Start your less plastic journey by measuring approx. how many bags and recycling waste your organisation generates on a daily/weekly/monthly basis (as well as approx. weight) so you can easily report improvements once you start implementing the changes above. Once you have some impressive ‘then and now’ statistics and examples of how your business has cut its plastic waste, be sure to share your stories to maximise the opportunities to inspire others to take action too! Using less plastic in your business is not about achieving zero waste perfection because unfortunately in the world we live in today that would be virtually impossible, and the scale of the challenge would prevent many businesses from even trying to reduce their plastic footprint. Instead it’s about recognising that we can’t go on as we are – treating an indestructible material as disposable waste. There’s an urgent need for us to collectively change our mindset around plastic and channel our creativity to come up with better ways of doing things that are more mindful of our limited resources as well as the huge impact our daily choices have on our fragile environment.