What do employees seek from their employers in a post pandemic world?

There have been many employers who have started initiatives like mental health days or weeks and enhanced counselling benefits but there is a need for employees also to connect with such initiatives. Here's what employees seek from their employers in a post pandemic world

In 2019, employers started to grasp the prevalence of mental health at work and realised the need to address the stigma whereas in 2020, mental health support became pivotal for running a successful business while fast forward to 2021 and today, the stakes have been raised even higher. This has been because of the sheer awareness of the workplace factors that can contribute to poor mental health.

What do employees seek from their employers in a post pandemic world? (Tima Miroshnichenko)

There have been many employers who have started initiatives like mental health days or weeks and enhanced counselling benefits but there is a need for employees also to connect with such initiatives as it is a new era of mental health at work. In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Dr Nalini Saligram, Founder and CEO at Arogya World, recalled, “Globally, the Covid-19 pandemic caused a lot of stress, uncertainty and anxiety among people, directly affecting their productivity and health negatively. Moreover, mental health concerns and burnout skyrocketed and employers reported increased mental health issues among employees.”

Talking about what employees seek from their employers in a post pandemic world, she revealed, “In the post-pandemic world, employees seek happiness and a sense of fulfillment at the job while improving their quality of life. The recent Indeed survey revealed that 67% of respondents believe that the pandemic has exacerbated burnout, compared to only 13% who think it has alleviated burnout. Therefore, companies must put people first, with increased emphasis on their health and well-being, particularly mental health. The need of the hour is to build healthy workplaces, as that's where people spend a significant part of their day. There are solutions and blueprints being provided to build healthy workplaces by groups.”

According to Dipti Manchanda, Associate Director - Human Resources at MedGenome Labs, in the wake of the pandemic, a significant number of employees are eager to see their organizations put greater emphasis on the following themes:

• Psychological safety at work – The health and safety of employees takes a top priority. While all organizations have policies to support and protect their employee base, the crisis has elevated these priorities to a critical everyday thread in the fabric of their cultures. Through this time, leaders have realized humanity as a way of maintaining connection, momentum, and focus. In addition, increased human interaction and connection have facilitated more psychological safety than ever before.
• Second, mental wellbeing - More than 50% of employees utilize existing resources within the organization, primarily corporate wellbeing.
• The third element is a culture that echoes TRUST. Providing your employees with a sense of trust will motivate them to achieve more.