Gen Z Employees' Top Physical and Mental Health Concerns

Generation Z, whose members are also called “Zoomers,” will be an increasingly powerful group in our nation’s workforce in the coming years. Born in the late ‘90s and early 2000s, Zoomers share several qualities with their predecessors— “Millennials,” or Generation Y—yet also possess some distinct features. These distinctions inspire Gen Zers’ particular physical and mental health needs: comprehensive mental services, digital functionality, socially-influenced decision-making, and more. To appeal to this unique and growing labor force, employers can turn to Givhero’s wellness platform for help in offering competitive employee health programs.

Below, we outline the greatest health and wellness concerns of Generation Z:

Comprehensive Mental Care

If a non-Zoomer knows anything about Gen Z, it’s likely the generation’s concern for their mental health. Research supports this perception: 70% of Zoomer teenagers report anxiety and depression as significant problems among their peers. An effect of this is that Zoomers are more likely to seek counseling or therapy than any other generation.

Thus, prioritizing mental health services in your company’s culture and hiring packages can help you attract and retain young employees. While previous generations kept such concerns out of the workplace, changing times call for new attitudes: assess your employees’ needs, enhance your in-house services, and implement wellness challenges.

Accessible and Intuitive Digital Tools

Also referred to as the “digital generation,” Gen Z has never known a world without the internet. Moreover, its oldest members were preteens when Apple released the first iPhone. So, they expect digital health and wellness functionality from their providers.

Your organization’s human resources department or wellness team should incorporate this concern into employee health and safety practices. Offer digital health assessments and a connected platform through which you can run wellness initiatives. When implemented carefully, digital functionality can reduce stress and ease your administrative workload.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Gen Z Employees' Top Physical and Mental Health Concerns

American Gen Zers make up the most multicultural generation in our nation’s history. Our country’s shifting demographics have created a diverse populace, and Zoomers have witnessed such pivotal events as America’s first Black president and the legalization of gay marriage. Therefore, they expect their employers to cultivate inclusive benefits and programs.

Additionally, Generation Z wants more than a comfortable job—they want a socially responsible employer that supports their community. Givhero’s social wellness app can help you do just that by tying participation in wellness programs to charitable giving. Doing so incentivizes employee engagement and offers the fulfillment that Zoomers look for.

Competitive Offerings

Millennials and Zoomers share a great concern over financial pressures. Large swaths of both generations have student loans to pay off, and they face an expensive and uncertain house market. On top of this, they often find healthcare costs prohibitive and stifling.

Employers can attract Gen Z employees with comprehensive healthcare options as well as financial wellness tools to help manage costs. Moreover, organizations should consider such factors as the social determinants of health when creating their benefits packages. What suits senior company members may not apply to new hires.

Socially-Driven Purchases

It follows that a generation who grew up with social media would allow others to influence their shopping habits. Gen Zers pay attention to what others purchase, particularly their friends and celebrity influencers. They’ll also shop around and weigh options, searching for the best one.

Therefore, diverse wellness options suit Zoomers. Givhero can provide your organization with a wide variety, as our social wellness platform offers customized charity partners from which users can choose. Their wellness activities can support their selected charity, and users can even team up with coworkers for organizational well-being challenges.

Partner with Givhero to Create a Robust Employee Health Program!

Supporting your employees—no matter their age or generation—is not only good practice but also good business. So, team up with digital wellness experts at Givhero to provide competitive employee health programs. Givhero’s unique functionality ties employee wellness engagement to social responsibility, a pairing that appeals specifically to Generation Z. For more information on Givhero’s benefits, call us today at (240) 801-5927 or schedule a call with us!