The study study revealed that the average net annual earnings per employee of £31,640 but this figure rose to £43,125 in companies that considered helping staff to consider wellbeing and achieve a better work-life balance to be an HR priority, which makes it 27 per cent more than the average.
The research is based on responses from the Heads of Human Resource departments or Board Director level staff from over 250 businesses. These have been drawn from across the UK and from a mix of sectors and a range of company sizes, with two thirds employing over 250 people, and none less than 50.
Conducted by Morgan Redwood, a leading expert in leadership development, the study also revealed that businesses that considered improving work-life balance to be a key HR focus were in the minority, as only 6 per cent regarded it as a priority for their HR departments.
Janice Haddon, Managing Director of Morgan Redwood, said that the results were not surprising. “The fact that company earnings per employee are higher for those with a greater focus on wellbeing and work-life balance isn’t surprising for us.”
“What is surprising is that so many companies fail to allocate it sufficient importance. A good work-life balance is an essential part of a person’s wellbeing, the results of which can have extremely positive effects on productivity and performance, which is something that’s evidenced in the findings of our study” said Haddon.
Despite the associated benefits of a good work-life balance, only 25.6 per cent of businesses believed that staff wellbeing was very closely connected to business performance. Morgan Redwood conducted a similar study in 2009, which indicated that 58 per cent of the businesses questioned at the time considered it to be an integral part of business success, suggesting a fall of more than half in the latest findings.
The latest study established seventeen key HR priorities from the companies questioned, out of which only three served to improve earnings per employee better than those with an HR focus on work-life balance.
Janice Haddon said: “Considering that both our 2015 report findings and our 2009 research indicate that placing an emphasis on improving staff wellbeing leads to greater earnings per employee, the difference in attitude is perplexing
“With our results indicating a clear financial benefit, we hope to see more companies taking a positive approach towards the work-life balance and wellbeing of their staff. Looking after staff makes sense if you want to get the best out of your business.”
