Research has revealed that organisations do not understand the different gender drivers for wellbeing at work, which is negatively affecting the health of their businesses.
The study from health and wellbeing provider HCML found that 41 percent of women want to feel supported and cared for as an individual by their employer, while 40 percent of men want their employer to help them improve their productivity at work.
This difference is important, researchers said, because employers that observe and address these gender differences with benefits can improve health and wellbeing and in turn unlock greater productivity.
Gender psychology
HCML examined the different gender drivers in conjunction with age data. It found that if these differences are taken into account when considering health and wellbeing initiatives, employers can drive greater value for the business as well as its employees.
Gender psychology and challenges differ at work and the study found that if employees do not feel understood, supported and cared for by their employers, they are less likely to stay in their roles or with the company.
HCML said that employers that don’t look at and address gender drivers in relation to mental wellbeing will lose out disproportionately in terms of staff satisfaction, productivity and turnover.
What women want
The research found that 52 percent of employees felt they needed more support from their employer to improve their health and wellbeing. However, the gender split was clear when the participants were asked to define how they felt their employer could support their health and wellbeing in particular.
More than two fifths (41 percent) of female employees said they want benefits that make them feel supported and cared for as an individual. And 44 percent said it would enable them to feel more proactive about improving their health and that they would be more likely to stay in a job that offers these kinds of benefits.
More than a third (36 percent) said it would help them improve their productivity at work. Researchers flagged up the finding that 32 percent of 18-24-year-olds said they would also welcome menopause benefits.
HCML said this signals that many women are thinking ahead when it comes to their health and wellbeing and suggests that employers who offer this type of support may see better retention with younger female employees.
What men want
Male respondents to the survey revealed different drivers, with 40 percent saying they want benefits and support that allow them to feel more productive at work. A similar proportion (36 percent) said they want to feel supported and cared for as an individual, and 32 percent said they would be more likely to stay in a job that offers these kinds of health and wellbeing benefits.
More than a third of male employees said workplace pressures would ease with the right health and wellbeing support as fewer colleagues would be off sick.
Researchers found other stark differences between genders in terms of wellbeing and productivity drivers. More than 35 percent of women want help and support with weight issues, while for men this was 26 percent.
Sleep was another area of gender difference. Two-fifths (40 percent) of women wanted support with sleep from their employer compared to 31 percent of men.
But only 35 percent of women said that better wellbeing support would help them with productivity, compared to 40 percent of men.
The researchers said this shows a “clear disparity” between workplace productivity drivers when it comes to gender.
Reduce sick days
Pamela Gellatly, strategic development director at HCML said: “The data showed us that women want better support and care from their employers, while men want to feel more productive. Our independent research, alongside our existing HCML corporate healthcare data, shows us that gender drivers must be understood in conjunction with age and in relation to workplace absence if benefits are to be utilised and effective.
“Interestingly our research also showed that female employees are more likely to be proactive in improving their health through the use of company benefits than men. We know that the utilisation of employee assistance programmes is low, but by offering the right type of support, and encouraging employees to use them, it can improve overall staff wellbeing and result in less days off sick.
“There is no one size fits all approach to wellbeing and off-the-shelf products are costing organisations a lot of money while having a minimal impact on the wellbeing of the workforce. An effective solution needs to consider the workforce demographic and look at underlying causation of absence and other lifestyle risk factors if it is going to be effective.”
