As we head into winter, it can be difficult to engage staff, keep them motivated and free from winter bugs. The prospect of a dark and cold journey into work when the employee may not feel 100% can be enough to seduce anyone to stay at home rather than venture into work. So what can you do to ensure your staff avoid the winter blues and stay motivated?
Holding welfare meetings with staff can often highlight concerns before they become an issue. Managers can often spot when an employee is struggling, but sometimes they end up waiting for something to happen in order to invoke a formal process (whether that be formal absence monitoring, grievance process or a disciplinary). When asked the question “have you had a discussion with the member of staff to see if they need support” managers will respond with “I didn’t know that I could do that”. This is where a welfare meeting comes in to play.
The whole purpose of a welfare meeting is to have a discussion with the employee and offer support, before the issue escalates. From our experience, in the majority of cases, employees open up and welcome the opportunity of assistance from the employer. A successful welfare meeting can unlock concerns and enable both parties to map out a way forward. You can use welfare meetings to discuss health concerns, performance or issues outside of work which may be impacting the employee’s ability to effectively undertake their role.
Employees are your key asset, so investing time to ask simple questions such as “how are you”, “can we support you”, “do you need any help”, is priceless. Don’t underestimate the power of holding a welfare meeting.
If you need any assistance or advice in relation to holding welfare meetings please speak to your HR Advisor or call one of our team on 01924 827869. Don’t forget welfare meetings can be logged in SAM as an action and meeting notes can be uploaded to the system as part of your absence strategy.