Higher Well-Being Increases Employee Engagement

A valuable relationship between employee well-being and employee engagement was recently measured in a research report on workplace wellness. The study found that when employees feel they have higher well-being they’re more likely to be engaged at work.

Let’s start with a quick definition of each term. Employee well-being is a state of optimal health and sense of purpose while employee engagement is the emotional connection employees have with their work, team, company and higher purpose.

The survey questioned more than 1,250 employees across 45 US markets and found that 88 percent of employees who cited feelings of high well-being (i.e., access to healthy options, the flexibility and freedom to pursue healthy programs, the ability to achieve work/life balance, and/or a sense of belonging and value to their employer), also reported feeling engaged at work. For those employees reporting lower well-being, only 50 percent felt engaged at work. Furthermore, for employees in the higher well-being category, 83 percent said they enjoy their work versus 41 percent in the lower well-being group; and 84 percent of employees who reported higher well-being felt loyal to their office co-workers, versus 54 percent of employees who reported feelings of low well-being.

While this connection may seem intuitive, little research has been conducted on the relationship between employee well-being and employee engagement. Employers can use the findings from this study to take steps to make positive organizational changes that will increase employee well-being and drive up engagement rates.

It was discovered in this study that managers, not executive officers, are the primary source of support, or non-support, in organizations. As perceptions of organizational support diminish, so do perceptions of well-being. The study found 72 percent of people who felt their employer cared about their well-being also reported having higher organizational support, whereas only seven percent of employees with lower organizational support reported feeling higher well-being. Employers should educate managers about the impact of well-being on employee engagement and provide the necessary tools, training and support to make it a priority.

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