{"id":72551,"date":"2024-10-14T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-10-14T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/?p=72551"},"modified":"2024-10-10T15:33:26","modified_gmt":"2024-10-10T13:33:26","slug":"hr-support-better-work-life-balance-workplace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/hr-support-better-work-life-balance-workplace\/","title":{"rendered":"12 ways to support a better work-life balance for your employees"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPeople & Leadership<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t12 ways to support a better work-life balance for your employees\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\tJessica Leyshon<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Live to work, or work to live?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a question that many members of the modern workforce are asking themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For many people, work finishes at the end of the working day. But for many more, it can eat into the evening and even the weekend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some employees welcome this, but others abhor it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A good People Company \u2013 an organisation which puts its people first over everything else \u2013 will understand its employees and their work-life needs and desires based on their personalities and expectations from work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although employers alone can\u2019t provide a 100% work-life balance for their employees \u2013 employees have to take some responsibility<\/a> to change their attitudes to work and home life \u2013 there are many things companies can do to help workers to find and maintain a work balance that\u2019s right for them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, here are some workplace practices employers can adopt to ensure they\u2019re supporting their employees to get the balance right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\tDownload your free copy of The changing face of HR in 2024 and discover what\u2019s keeping HR leaders up at night<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Offer flexible and remote working<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

81% of 3,500 employees we polled placed importance and value on flexible working. They want to be trusted to manage when, where and how they work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s no surprise really.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Workers value employers who empower them to manage their own time. Employees feel valued at companies where they know they can finish earlier get their boiler fixed or see a physician when needed, safe in the knowledge that their employer knows that they\u2019ll still get the job done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Encourage managers to focus on productivity rather than hours<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Rather than count the hours employees work, encourage managers to focus on the completion of a particular task.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some days employees may need to put in long hours to complete a task, but this is offset by the days when they don\u2019t need to do a full eight-hour day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Encourage breaks<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Encourage your employees to take breaks, take a walk or even work in an entirely different part of the office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can create break-out rooms or set aside spare desks that workers can go to. Sometimes team chatter and phones can be overwhelming and it\u2019s healthy to break away for a bit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Regularly review workloads<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Review your allocation of duties to ensure individuals have achievable workloads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You will need to familiarise yourself with the processes of allocating work. What seems like a small task to management might actually take an individual a day to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Managers who talk to their teams regularly will know who is busy and stressed, and who has capacity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ask your staff regularly to indicate to managers whether they are overworked, just right or have spare capacity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\tDownload your free copy of The changing face of HR in 2024 and discover what\u2019s keeping HR leaders up at night<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Lead by example<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Ensure that managers and the senior leadership team enjoy a healthy work-life balance too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Make sure they\u2019re leaving the office on time, taking breaks and not emailing workers out of office hours or expecting them to deliver work in unworkable time scales when it isn\u2019t urgent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. Give employees time to volunteer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Research shows millennials are more motivated by social action rather than simply just getting paid when looking for employment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having the opportunity to do good is not just confined to millennials, though.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And if workers are allowed the freedom to give back while working, they will generally feel good about themselves and about their workplace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

7. Reconsider time off<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Could you afford to give your staff more time off?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Equally, another way to prevent burnout is to force workers to take their time off within the holiday year by not allowing them to carry over holiday or capping how many days they can carry over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most team members would rather book the time off than risk losing them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8. Increase support for parents<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Often companies lose great talent, especially mums, because they can\u2019t cater to their childcare needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The problem isn\u2019t restricted to mums alone, with many men<\/a> saying they want to spend more time with their children, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ensure the mums and dads in your organisation are getting a better work-life balance, so you don\u2019t lose precious expertise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not all companies can provide company cr\u00e8ches. However, you can consider ways to help with childcare costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also, providing better and equal benefits for maternity, paternity or shared parental leave will encourage all parents to balance their working life and parenthood regardless of their gender.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And consider if you can do more to offer parents part-time roles or job shares.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

9. Offer health cash plans<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Provide health cash plans providing reassurance to employees knowing that they have insurance if they or their family become unwell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It also encourages a more pro-active approach to health check-ups and inoculations leading to fewer staff absences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\tDownload your free copy of The changing face of HR in 2024 and discover what\u2019s keeping HR leaders up at night<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

10. Perks or no perks?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Our research revealed that while 40% of business owners believe office games and similar benefits are important to employees, just 5% of workers agree.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, if you\u2019re considering perks in the office such as ping pong tables, think again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, there may be additional services that can save employees time and money and alleviate stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These may include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n