Health@Work E-tips for workplace wellness coordinators: Building community

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Welcome to Health@Work's newsletter for worksite wellness coordinators who work in organizations located in Hennepin County. The purpose of Health@Work's monthly E-tips is to help you (the wellness coordinator) promote better health at your workplace. Please note that any reference to products or services in this newsletter is for educational purposes and does not constitute an endorsement on the part of Hennepin County Health@Work. 


Help your employees connect

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“People with thriving wellbeing are often moved by the impact they have had on another person, group, or community.” – Tom Rath

 

How connected are employees at your workplace? Do employees feel supported to bring their full selves to work? In large measure, the quality of work relationships determines what individuals and teams are able to accomplish. The Gallup Organization found that having high-quality relationships at work predicts high employee retention and productivity, customer metrics, and profitability.

 

Connection is also a basic human need. In terms of well-being, research has shown that it is just as important as following a healthy diet and lifestyle. Social connection can lower depression rates, improve self-esteem, and even play a role in immune functioning.

 

Helping your employees find common ground and shared identity and experience can also foster diversity and inclusion. When a workplace has strong relationships, employers can tap into and unleash employees’ sense of purpose, passions, and commitment.

 

As busy adults, it can be more challenging to seek out the connections we value and need. Here are a few ways you can help your employees forge relationships and find connections at work:

  1. Offer Employee Resource Groups (ERGs). ERGs, sometimes called affinity groups, can be anything from sports leagues to parenting to book clubs where employees hang out to share a common interest. But they are often the most powerful when they focus on creating a diverse and inclusive workplace. This article provides some tips for how to start an ERG at your workplace.
  2. Plan wellness programs or events that encourage employees to form connections around healthy social activities such as salad or “buddah bowl” potlucks, or local 5K run/walks. See active.com to find and register for upcoming races.
  3. Volunteer together as a company to bond over acts of service. Volunteer Match can connect your company with community-sourced volunteer opportunities.
  4. For more ideas on ways to help your employees find their people, check out the Health@Work Take Charge@Work career well-being toolkit or Paths to Positivity mental well-being campaign. Both offer a number of ideas to help your employees feel more connected with others in both their work and personal lives. E-mail kelly.harjes@hennepin.us to learn more.
  5. Help your employees take their own steps to foster the connections they value and need. Share the employee handout below: “Why and how to connect.”

 

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Employee E-tips

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Click here to read this month's E-tips for your employees: "Why and how to connect."

 

To share these E-tips with employees, you can:  

  • Email the E-tips document to your staff as an attachment. 1) Click the link to download and save the E-tips to your computer. 2) Add your organization's logo in the bottom left corner. 3) Then send it as an email attachment to staff. 
  • Print the document once you've added your organization's logo and post it in a common area in your workplace.
  • Copy and paste the text into your organization's newsletter.

 

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Health@Work save the date

Fruits and veggies: Score more! 

What: campaign training

Who: Worksite wellness coordinators

When: Wednesday July 10, 2019

Morning (time to be determined)

Where: Brookdale Library, Brooklyn Center

 

Stay tuned for details and registration


Missed last month's E-tips?

Click here to read the May E-tips on exercise as play.

 

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About us:

 

Hennepin County Public Health Health@Work offers a broad range of low- and no-cost workplace wellness programs and services to employers located in Hennepin County. For more information visit the Health@Work website


Contact us:


Linda Brandt, MPH

Senior Health Promotion Specialist

Hennepin County Human Services and Public Health Department

Public Health Promotion

linda.brandt@hennepin.us

 

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