National Work Life Week is a good opportunity for employers and HR teams to consider how they can help employees achieve a healthier balance between work and life outside work.

For employees, work-life balance can mean different things. It could mean having the flexibility to work from home, changing working hours to collect children from school, finishing early on a Friday or having access to support with financial and mental wellbeing.

For employers, small changes can make a significant difference.

Offer flexible working that works for employees

Flexible working doesn’t have to mean working from home five days a week.

Simple options such as flexible start and finish times, hybrid working and compressed hours can give employees greater control over their working lives.

For example, a parent might start earlier and finish earlier so they can collect their children from school. Another employee might work from home one day a week to reduce commuting time.

According to CIPD research, 80% of employees with a flexible working arrangement said it had a positive impact on their quality of life.

The important thing is to focus on what flexibility means for your workforce, rather than adopting a one-size-fits-all approach.

Could a shorter working week improve wellbeing?

The UK’s four-day working week trial produced some interesting results.

The 2022 trial involved 61 organisations and around 2,900 employees, testing a shorter working week with no reduction in pay.

By the end of the trial:

• 71% of employees reported lower levels of burnout
• 39% felt less stressed
• 60% found it easier to combine work with caring responsibilities
• 62% said it was easier to combine work with their social lives
• Staff leaving participating organisations fell by 57%

The trial doesn’t mean every employer needs to introduce a four-day week. However, it does demonstrate that employers can explore different ways of organising work without simply assuming that longer hours mean better results.

Give employees back some of their time

You don’t need to introduce a four-day week to improve work-life balance.

At Planned Future, for example, we finish early on Fridays, giving employees a half-day to start their weekend.

Other employers could consider:

• Friday afternoon finishes
• Summer Friday initiatives
• Occasional wellbeing afternoons
• Flexible start and finish times
• Compressed working hours
• Protecting employees from unnecessary out-of-hours communication

The best approach will depend on the organisation and its employees. The important thing is to consider whether there are opportunities to give people greater control over their time.

Support financial wellbeing

Financial worries can have a significant impact on an employee’s wider wellbeing.

Employers can help by providing employees with access to financial wellbeing education and support covering areas such as:

• Managing money and building financial resilience
• Pensions and retirement planning
• Saving and investing
• Managing debt
• Financial planning through different life stages

Financial wellbeing workshops can give employees the knowledge and confidence to make better-informed financial decisions, while also demonstrating that their employer recognises the pressures they may face outside the workplace.

Don’t overlook mental wellbeing

A healthy work-life balance also means having the time and headspace to look after your mental wellbeing.

Employers can support employees through mental wellbeing workshops and practical resources covering topics such as managing stress, building resilience, preventing burnout and developing healthier working habits.

However, wellbeing initiatives work best when they sit alongside good working practices.

A mindfulness session won’t solve an excessive workload, just as a flexible working policy won’t help if employees feel unable to use it.

Culture, workload, flexibility and wellbeing support all need to work together.

Ask your employees what would help

There is no single definition of work-life balance.

The best way to understand what your employees need is to ask them.

Would flexible working make a difference? Would more predictable hours help? Would employees benefit from financial education or mental wellbeing support?

National Work Life Week provides a useful opportunity to start those conversations – but supporting employee wellbeing should be a year-round commitment.

How Planned Future can help

Planned Future helps employers support the financial and mental wellbeing of their employees through engaging workshops, webinars and practical resources.

From Money Mindset and Pensions & Investing to Retirement Planning and mental wellbeing, our sessions are designed to give employees practical knowledge they can use in their everyday lives.

Find out how Planned Future can support your employee wellbeing programme.