When employers make investments in the health of their employees, they reap a manifold benefit to those investments: their employees thrive, their business thrives, and the societies in which they operate thrive. There’s a positive opportunity that arises when employers address the inherent interconnectedness between work and health.
The McKinsey Health Institute (MHI) has identified drivers of health that employers can influence and would be wise to support. By improving employees’ health, employers could add trillions of dollars to the global economy and have a positive impact on society. When employers and employees work together to improve modifiable drivers of health, everyone benefits.
Six modifiable drivers of health in the workplace—social interaction, mindsets and beliefs, productive activity, stress, economic security, and sleep—were identified from the growing body of research that connects the dots among drivers of health and the workplace. Researchers are building a greater understanding of how employers can address modifiable drivers to create change in favor of optimal employee health.
Considering that the average person spends a third of their life at work (more than 90,000 hours in a lifetime), employment can be a critical piece of the puzzle when working toward the goal of improving global health. MHI research showed there are important differences between the workplace factors that lead to poor health and those that lead to good health. Their analysis found that employee self-efficacy, adaptability, and feelings of belonging at work were top predictors of good health, whereas toxic workplace behaviors, role ambiguity, and role conflict at work were top predictors of poor health.
MHI analysis shows that employers can effect significant change through six modifiable drivers of health: social interaction, mindsets and beliefs, productive activity, stress, economic security, and sleep.
Many employers are already investing in employee health and well-being, but would be wise to reflect on where they currently provide support and if they might want to change resources or add more interventions.