Step 3 – Determine Employee Health and Wellness Needs

It is important to assess the needs and interests of employees before developing and implementing workplace activities.  Employees of the same organization will have many different needs.  Therefore, diverse workplace health programs are necessary to meet the needs of employees within the organization.  Be sensitive to age and body limitations, as well as cultural differences.

Strategies

Choosing the method that’s right for you

Types of information gathering To assess the full range of employee health and wellness needs, questions should include issues related to the organizational culture, employee healthy lifestyle choices, and occupational health and safety.

• Conduct a workplace health survey. 
• Informal discussion (one on one or small group discussions)
• Suggestion Box
• Focus Group  

Determine or prioritize needs
Prioritize through brainstorming or common themes identified and share these findings with management and staff.  The next step is to develop a Plan for Action.  (Refer to step 4 of the Balanced Workplace Health program)

Create a report and share the document.  Take the time to put all of the information gathered into a report. Find ways to share the whole report or highlights with management and employees. At this point you may wish to conduct group feedback sessions with some employees to ensure the information collected accurately reflects employees’ interest and concerns.

Develop a plan to continue to collect information. Plan on re-doing workplace assessments regularly and continue to collect and monitor information. Further assessments will allow the identification of any new or prevailing issues and will enable a comparison with previous results.

Checklist

• Was the reason and importance of the survey communicated to employees?
• Did you consider the timing in terms of conflicts with other major events (e.g. holidays, labour negotiations)?
• Did you account for those “hard to reach groups” of employees (e.g. shift work, low literacy)?
• Did you have an accompanying letter of support from management, unions and other key stakeholders?
• Did you provide an incentive for employees who participated (e.g. prizes)?
• Did a sufficient number of employees respond to the survey (e.g. at least 50% of employees)?
• Is the survey representative of your organization? Have any employee groups been missed (e.g. department, age group, sex, job classification, language)?
• Did you create a report of the findings?
• Do you have a plan to collect this type of information at regular intervals over time?

Links and Resources  

1. Health Canada - Health Works Guide
   If you are the owner or manager of a small business and you want to improve productivity, morale and safety in your workplace.
   
   
2. Health Canada’s Environmental and Workplace Health
   The environment, including the workplace, has an important impact on a person’s health. Health Canada works to protect the health of Canadians from environmental risks. This website offers information and advice on some of the most common environmental factors that affect human health: air, noise, soil and water pollution, climate change, environmental contaminants, occupational health and safety, pest control and radiation.
   
   
3. Health Canada’s Work-Life Balance in Canadian Workplaces
   This website has been created to help organizations design and implement supportive programs and policies facilitating work-life balance. By reducing work-life struggles, individuals can enjoy a healthier lifestyle while improving productivity at work. A first section allows employers, unions, managers and human resources practitioners to access the latest information and examples of best practices that enhance work-life balance for their employees.
   
   
4. The Corporate Health Model provides large and medium-sized corporations with a proven, step-by-step approach for determining the real needs of employees for health programming.
   
   
5. The Small Business Health Model was designed for small businesses (up to 100 employees) to help employees and their families to increase control over and improve their health. Employees are given the opportunity to specify the health-related issues that are important to them and what kind of health promotion programming they prefer.
   
   
6. Comprehensive Workplace Health Promotion: Recommended and Promising Practices for Situational Assessment Tools
   This resource contains information about 29 recommended and promising
   situational assessment tools in six categories: needs assessments,
   health risk appraisals, workplace audits, employee interest surveys,
   current practice surveys, and organizational culture surveys. It is
   designed to help workplace health promotion intermediaries in Ontario
   to: select and implement a situational assessment tool in their
   workplace, and replicate and/or adapt the best practice process used to
   generate the tools. The resource also provides a conceptual look at
   CWHP, situational assessment tools and best practice; guidelines and
   principles related to situational assessment tools; methodological
   information; and future recommendations for the project
   
   
7. The Health Communication Unit Workplace Information and Resources
   The Health Communication Unit at the Centre for Health Promotion, University of Toronto, is one of 22 members of the Ontario Health Promotion Resource System funded by the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care. The Health Communication Unit was developed to provide training and support in health communication and includes health promotion planning, evaluation, and policy change.
   
   
8. Influencing the Organizational Environment to Create Healthy Workplaces Info-pack
   This Info-pack focuses on one element of the CWHP approach – the organizational environment. It is designed for practitioners who support the development of healthy workplaces in their community and would like to increase their understanding of the ways in which the organizational environment affects workplace health. It also provides practical ideas about what practitioners can do to promote healthy workplace environments.
   
   
9. Ministry of Labour
   The Ontario Workplace Gateway provides employers, workers and others with one-stop access to information and services on a wide variety of workplace-related topics. Ranging from rights, responsibilities and resources respecting employment standards and health and safety laws, environmental protection and other legislated standards, the Ontario Workplace Gateway helps you find the information and answers you need to ensure safe, fair and harmonious workplaces.
   
   
10. Canada’s Healthy Workplace Week – to promote a comprehensive and integrated approach to workplace health in order to improve and sustain the health of Canadian organizations.
    • Resilience: A Key Skill for Surviving in Today's Workplace Activity
      Resilient people have key skills - they recognize stress symptoms, respond appropriately and take time for renewal. The following activities can be used for yourself or with your team to develop these key skills, and become more resilient!
    • How Healthy is my Work Culture? An Introduction to the Neighbour@Work Approach Activity
      Take this self-assessment to learn more about how your actions and the actions of your co-workers can affect your workplace culture.
    • Organizational Health Audit Activity
      Use the Organizational Health Audit to build awareness about workplace health within your organization. It will also help you recognize workplace initiatives that positively influence employee and organizational well-being!