Creating an inclusive worksite wellness program is crucial, but you may feel unsure how to start. You aren’t alone: employers acknowledge the importance of diversified wellness opportunities but need guidance to incorporate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). This dilemma calls for inclusive leadership, an appropriate framework, and other practices.
Below, we outline practices to help you make your wellness program equitable and welcoming:
1. Incorporate Inclusive Wellness Leadership
How representative is your wellness program’s leadership? Determining an answer to this question requires a critical eye and willingness to speak honestly. As a starting point, consider the six signature traits of inclusive leadership and whether your program’s administration reflects them.
Also, survey your workforce about whether they feel your program’s leadership addresses their needs. This step may lead you to appoint a new representative that speaks for them. After all, comprehensive leadership should model your organization’s entire population.
2. Measure Your DEI and Set Goals to Improve It
With representative program leadership in place, you can then create a framework within which it operates. “Creating a framework” entails that you first measure how well your organization ensures diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Identifying your company’s current DEI status allows you to then set goals for how to improve it. In doing so, we suggest that you turn to experts. Givhero partners with several organizations - including benefits advisors and wellness companies - who employ wellness coaches and diversity experts. These specialists can assess businesses’ DEI frameworks and provide anti-bias training to employees. Our flexible options can easily integrate into the wellness efforts you already have in place or plan to incorporate.
3. Review Company Policies
You and your employees’ wellness leadership can then scrutinize your company’s policies and common practices. Organizations should consider how these policies impact different individuals based on their sex, gender, race, religion, age, or marital status.
For instance, do all employees have equal access to your health benefits? Can they all use the same facilities and health services? An inclusive leadership board becomes crucial in considering everyone’s needs in these matters.
Diversifying your wellness program also requires that you announce decisions through multiple channels. Offer your employees materials in several languages then consider other literacy and cultural nuances that could affect your communications.
4. Diversity Wellness Programming
You may already be familiar with the effects of mental health on workplace productivity. But what about the effects of unconscious biases and/or micro-aggressions? How do employees adjust attitudes and behaviors they are unaware of?
Improve your workplace’s wellness through regular diversity training and programming.
5. Review and Evaluate Routinely
Though we may wish for an easy, one-step solution, a consistently welcoming environment requires steady effort and careful reevaluation. Nevertheless, Givhero’s support can ensure that you continue meeting your goals and your employees contribute to progress.
Furthermore, our wellness options include more than physical and mental health care: we also support social wellness. As a result, your employees can improve the company culture, the local community, and their health and wellness
Learn How to Craft Worksite Wellness Programs for a Diverse Workforce
To ensure accessibility and equal opportunity in your wellness program, reach out to Givhero. Our digital wellness platform can serve as the “home base” for your company’s well-being mission. The app’s sleek design and intuitive functioning allow all employees to keep track of their individual goals and company-wide progress. Your company can become a better place for all by ensuring that everyone’s voices are heard. Call us today at (240) 801-5927 or schedule a demo online.
