YuLife: COVID-19 has transformed employer attitudes to wellbeing

Employee wellbeing has taken a hit during the pandemic.

Working from home has felt more like living at work for most. This is because an already declining work life balance has been completely eroded for many.

Research by UK InsureTech startup YuLife found that 37% of UK employees worked more overtime in the pandemic – this rises to 45% for younger employees aged between 25 and 34.

27% of the more than 2,000 adults surveyed by YouGov for YuLife said they worked an additional two hours a week, while 13% are now working an additional five hours a week.

However, employers have largely stepped up to support their staff through these wellbeing and burnout challenges.

38% of adults surveyed were optimistic that employers will care more about employees in the future, compared to the pre-pandemic old normal.

Despite this, they have high expectations of their employers regarding wellbeing and they want organizations to better tailor benefits to everyone’s individual needs.

While 70% of adults surveyed said they knew what wellbeing benefits were on offer, only 14% said they had taken full advantage of them and 27% said they wanted the benefits to be more relevant to their needs.

What is particularly interesting is how much the adults surveyed thought that employers’ prioritizing wellbeing would help keep them motivated – 62% said it would help them be more motivated and 27% said a lot more motivated.

According to YuLife, “these findings demonstrate just how far the workplace has evolved in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has encouraged many businesses to make vital changes in order to safeguard the wellbeing of their employees.”

But what does the future hold?

“Workplaces now need to give employees more tools to help them benefit from the new expectations they now have from their employers following the pandemic.

“Businesses that respond fastest to these trends have the best chances of retaining their top talent, showing how the right wellbeing policies now constitute a key business imperative.”