UK employers could pocket a £34 billion productivity boost if they improve staff wellbeing, job satisfaction and commitment, but they have also been warned that pursuing the “100 percent productivity myth” could derail these efforts.
The research into workforce productivity, from Fruitful Insights, in partnership with Legal & General Group Protection, found that productivity losses for employees who have low levels of wellbeing and commitment were 2.5 times more than for workers with high individual wellbeing and commitment.
Researchers calculated that where low wellbeing and commitment are factors, productivity loss per employee costs their employer £10,500 a year. In comparison, employees with high wellbeing and commitment cost employers less, but they do still cost £4,200 in lost productivity per employee, per year.
The data confirms that subjective wellbeing measures, such as job satisfaction, tie in directly to the impact of wellbeing on business productivity. The lower the overall satisfaction level of employees, the less productive the business is.
Researchers said that the data shows the overall employee wellbeing status, but it doesn’t explain why.
Wellbeing drivers
Further analysis showed that cultural factors, such as work control, competence and good relationships with managers and colleagues, were the key drivers behind high or low wellbeing.
In financial terms, the data showed productivity loss for an employee without supportive colleagues is calculated at £10,000. This is more than double the productivity loss for an employee with supportive colleagues, which is £4,700.
Productivity losses for an employee who feels valued were calculated at £3,700, while an employee who doesn’t feel valued will cost an employer £10,400 in lost productivity.
Skills are another area that affects productivity loss costs. An employee who feels their skills are being well used appropriately will lose £3,600 in productivity, while someone who thinks their skills are ignored or unused can rack up a profanity loss of £9,800.
Productivity myth
Researchers emphasised that while the data shows levels of productivity loss, it is important to acknowledge that 100 percent productivity is a myth.
Even employees on top form experience some productivity loss, which the data suggested was likely because of an element of absence or dissatisfaction.
Mike Tyler, chairman and co-founder of Fruitful Insights, said: “It would be impossible to get productivity loss to zero. Thinking you can, might only lead to issues such as work-related stress and burnout. The important point is that the most satisfied employees have a much lower level of productivity loss than the very dissatisfied employees. So, our focus should be on bringing the tail up; focusing on where people are dissatisfied, as opposed to expecting 100 percent.
“There’s clearly a big prize to be had, in terms of improving wellbeing and commitment, and hence productivity of the UK working population. But that won’t be achieved through subjective wellbeing measures alone. These are important, but it’s time to evolve. To really get to the core of the matter, employers need to be encouraged to focus on the cultural drivers of wellbeing. It’s for all these reasons that we designed Fruitful Insights; provided at no extra cost to the majority of Legal & General Group Protection’s clients covering 100+ employees.”
Colin Fitzgerald, distribution director – Group Protection at Legal & General Retail, said: “The Fruitful Insights platform not only helps the intermediaries that work with us – and their clients – to quantify the impact of wellbeing on productivity, it also helps them gain subjective insights from employees. And, crucially, it also helps them identify the cultural drivers. This allows them to identify priorities, action plans and follow-up assessments to help improve wellbeing and performance within a client’s business.
“Our group protection products are as much about wellbeing – helping employees be well, get better and be supported – as they are about insurance. And we want our employer clients and their employees to make full use of the valuable services provided alongside the insurance product. At the same time though, we’re fully aware that value of investment into benefits, services and interventions, will only be fully realised by organisations when the environment in which they sit – the culture – is also conducive to good wellbeing.”
