Guatemala. 66% of employers in the region believe the Covid-19 pandemic will have a negative impact on employee productivity and 83% on their well-being (physical and emotional health, social relationships and financial well-being), emphasizing that it is the main problem workers face (73%), according to the Wellness Survey Diagnostic for 2021, produced worldwide by Unity Willis Towers Watson.

He points out that in addition to stress, mental health (anxiety and depression) and lack of exercise – at 69% and 63%, respectively – are the other problems affecting the workforce, along with financial well-being, which have worsened in the past six years.

In terms of companies’ concern for the health and well-being of employees and their families, this has increased by 32%, going from 43% in 2015 to 75% in 2021, and the highest priority for employers in the next three years, will be physical (92%) and emotional ( 96%) is the main luxury.

In this way, the first will seek to identify and effectively manage risks to population health and chronic diseases in the entire workforce, and the second will identify and manage stress and behavioral health problems throughout the population.

In terms of financial well-being (72%), they are expected to identify and implement solutions to improve the financial health of their workforce, and for the community (80%) to identify and implement ways to enhance a sense of participation in health and financial issues among employees, families and the community.

The survey highlights specific actions to improve the physical well-being of employees:

• Provide medical examinations and biometric tests (56%)
• Offer healthy food options (45%)
• Enhanced use of virtual attention to meet employee needs (45%)

On the financial side, webinars are offered to educate on various issues faced by employees (31%); In addition, personal financial advice will be provided on short-term financial matters; For example, in person, online or by phone (30%); Negotiated interest rates and terms for borrowing or refinancing – including emergency loans – are on display and monitored (22%).

Unity Willis Towers Watson survey also highlights employer support for telecommuting; For example:

• 80% offer ergonomic equipment (adjustable seating, alternate ergonomic seating, hands-free phone calls)
• 47% provide online access to virtual work environment videos
• 33% provide subsidies to employees to manage remote work costs (equipment cost, Internet access, other bills)

In terms of their organization’s culture of well-being, employers offer flexible work arrangements so that employees can manage other obligations, such as caring for sick children or relatives (54%) while they go about their work.

or they have paid parental leave – paternity or paternity – beyond the time or paid leave required by law (41%) and provide childcare support services; For example, on-site or near-site, backup daycare, and childcare subsidies (32%).

Currently, the survey concludes that attendance is the biggest problem in organizations’ workforce (39%); unplanned absence (35%); and the wide diversity of job roles (27%).

For the Unity Willis Towers Watson Study, 585 employers with operations in Latin America and 5.3 thousand employees globally responded; 66% of employers work in multiple countries.

Fountain. Central America and the Caribbean digital newspaper