No Pay Grade Is Exempt From Poor Health Or Its Absence.

The C-suite is not immune to stress, and some evidence suggests that executive resignation rates are rising.

 

The pandemic shined a spotlight on the state of workforce well-being and the role that organizations play in determining quality of life for workers and their families. Research shows that C-suite executives can contribute to their own well-being, as well as that of their employees.

According to a recent report from Deloitte Insights, “Most companies now recognize the need to invest more in the holistic health of their employees, because it’s clear that workers are fed up — with outdated norms like the 9-to-5 schedule, with the expectation that they should be “always on,” with subpar wages and benefits, and with the idea that they should be willing to sacrifice their health and their personal lives for their jobs.

Executives in the C-suite are not immune.

 

“Although far less attention has been paid to well-being among the C-suite — how they’re faring, the increased demands placed upon them and whether these factors are influencing their desire to stay in their leadership roles — some recent research points to increasing quit rates among executives,” it said.

The study discovered a number of patterns in workplace well-being.

 

Executives are unaware of the struggles that their staff members are facing. It is commonly recognized that the epidemic has had a detrimental effect on both the public’s physical and mental health. Both the C-suite and lower-level employees’ well-being may be at an all-time low.

Less than two out of three workers assessed various aspects of their health as “great” or “good,” and more than three quarters of the C-suite claimed that the epidemic had a negative impact on their well-being.

Additionally, a sizable portion of both groups mentioned fatigue and a variety of mental health problems, with C-suite executives identifying most of these problems just as frequently (or in some cases more frequently) than employees, demonstrating that wellbeing, or lack thereof, does not regard a person’s position in the organization.

 

Work is the one significant barrier. Despite the continued challenges of the epidemic — or possibly partly because of them — individuals across the globe are laser-focused on their health in 2022.

The vast majority of respondents (91%) have well-being goals, and 75% of employees and 89% of the C-suite agree that this year, increasing their well-being is a key priority. Most people mentioned that for now, this is more important to them than improving their work.

The road ahead won’t be simple, despite the respondents’ motivation to improve their well-being. The majority of workers (83 percent) and executives (74 percent) say they are having difficulty meeting their wellness goals, many of which are related to their work. Heavy workloads or stressful jobs (30%) and not having enough time due to extended work hours were the two biggest obstacles mentioned by respondents (27 percent).

 

For the retention of executives and employees, a high emphasis on well-being is essential. In one respect, the C-suite does enjoy an edge over employees in the way that work affects their physical, mental and social health. Ninety-one percent of employees and 97 percent of the C-suite think their job has a part in deciding their well-being, but whether this is a good or negative effect differs dramatically between these two categories.

The likelihood that employees’ jobs are good for their well-being was far lower than that of the C-suite. But even though the C-suite executives were more enthusiastic about their job’s involvement in their well-being, they actually were more likely than employees to declare they’d leave their post for a job that better supports their well-being

Whether or not C-suite executives are fully aware of the concerns affecting employees’ well-being, the majority are taking responsibility for it. 95 percent of C-suite members concur that leaders should be accountable for workers’ well-being, and 96 percent say they currently feel accountable in their current positions.

“The route to health-savvy leadership certainly won’t be easy,” the research said.

“However, executives stand to earn significantly by accepting this new reality in addition to workers. They may find that they can finally put their own well-being first in addition to improving and becoming more purpose-driven leaders. It’s a key transition that could help them stay the course in their duty and become faithful ambassadors of a better tomorrow.”

 

 

 

 

Source: https://www.benefitspro.com/2022/06/22/well-being-or-the-lack-of-it-does-not-discriminate-by-pay-grade/