Five ways to promote employee wellness in a virtual workplace
April 25, 2025
“Improving the health and well-being of our employees…offers a ”win-win” all around. Employees benefit from better support for their health. Companies benefit from less absence and improved productivity. And society benefits from improved public health.”
–Steve Flanagan, Chief Executive, The Fremantle Trust
Workplace wellness is one of the hot topics for 2025. Not only are employee satisfaction rates lower than they have been in years, there is more awareness being raised about the prevalence of burnout than ever. To prevent the many costs associated with unhappy workers, organizations are expanding their efforts and thinking of new ways to promote employee wellness and helping them avoid burnout, feel valued, be happier, and appreciate their jobs more.
One of the ways that employers are thinking outside of the box is promoting employee wellness using virtual tools, both for remote and on-site workers. Ready to get started? In this post I’ll explore:
-The state of employee satisfaction and happiness
-The 2025 workplace wellness trend
-Promoting employee wellness using:
-Wellness apps
-Employee wellness resource lists
-Promoting local events
-Planning virtual happy hours
-Recognizing employees
How unhappy are employees?
According to Gallup, the number of employees reporting feeling “extremely satisfied” with their organization was at only 18%, the lowest since they began collecting data on the topic, 2008.
Other 2025 workplace happiness stats:
-More employees are satisfied with their relationships than their opportunities (15.Five.com)
-Older employees are more likely to report feeling satisfied with their roles (15.Five.com).
-Nearly 9 in 10 employees consider the benefits package when evaluating an employer (Workhuman.com).
–Sixty-seven percent of employees who work for organizations with wellness programs like their jobs more, and they are just as likely to recommend the company to others.
-Industry reports show a $1.47 return on investment for every dollar spent on corporate wellness initiatives (SSR.com).
-69% of unhappy employees cite not feeling valued by their employer as the main reason (Development Academy).
Want to learn more about the wellness trend? We’ve pulled some additional reading for you:
5 Unconventional Wellness Trends That Will Shape The Workforce In 2025
Workplace Wellbeing Initiative: 2025 Trends
7 Workplace Challenges for 2025
Convinced? Here are five low-cost and low-lift ways to promote employee wellness that work with both on-site and remote workplaces.
Gift subscriptions to meditation or fitness apps
Providing free access to apps that employees can access on their smart watches or phones sends the message that you want them to be mindful of their physical and mental health inside and outside of work hours.
Some popular apps that work across different types of devices include:
Add an extra team element by sponsoring a contest between employees to see who can walk the most steps each day or meditate the most days in a row.
Photo by Alyssa li on Unsplash
Provide training on various wellness topics to help your employees integrate healthy practices into their life
What better way to show your employees that you care about their health and wellness?
Want to demo some of our courses to see if they are a good fit for your team? Check out these trainings from our library on promoting employee wellness:
Fostering Psychological Safety at Work
Strategies for Success in a Hybrid Workplace
Create a wellness resource list for employees and mention/share it often
Some people draw a blank when thinking about how to improve their well-being. Get their wellness juices flowing and show them how important it is in your organization by keeping a running resource list going.
Keep it posted in your team online hub and mention it in your company communications.
Some things to include:
-Local gyms (bonus: contact gyms about offering discounts to your team)
-Outdoor areas to visit
-Museums with free/discounted days
-Lists of area restaurants that deliver healthy lunches
-Information on yoga studios
-Financial literacy/support resources
-Upcoming local events
-Affordable or in-network mental health resources
Share mindfulness or wellness events in company communications
What is going on in your community? There are often health and wellness events or activities that your employees may like to attend or that you can encourage them to attend. A simple subscription to a local events newsletter should provide all the info you need.
Don’t have anything to share? Create your own event!
Host a monthly happy hour – get creative!
One huge factor in employee satisfaction and wellness is feeling valued as a part of the team. This takes intention on the part of management, especially in a virtual workspace. One way to help create camaraderie is to host virtual happy hours.
Help your team members avoid digital burnout by allowing them to end work early on the days of your happy hours or trying to make the days less meeting-heavy. This will also cause your employees to look forward to attending.
Stay tuned for an upcoming post on hosting fun and effective virtual happy hours.
Recognize birthdays and work anniversaries
Recognizing a special day for an employee has the obvious result of helping that employee to feel valued. The results extend beyond that, however.
First, it shows the rest of the team that each person is valued, no matter what their role or how visible they are to the rest. In some cases it can also create curiosity about different individuals and help them to get to know others more.
From a promoting employee wellness perspective the recognition can serve as a way to allow or encourage the team member to take a break from their normal schedule to do something for themselves. Taking time to oneself to celebrate a birthday or a special occasion can be a special form of self-care.
Preparing a gift for an employee gives management or HR the chance to learn about them. Plus, the gift itself can be one that promotes wellness such as a gift certificate for a massage or scented candle.
More from Enspark on employee wellness:
How Managers Can Help Prevent Zoom Fatigue
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