Promoting Healthy Workplaces: Well-Being Insights for Leadership, Engagement, and Productivity

© 2019 Dr. Nicole Cvenkel, Ph.D. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse  05/23/2019

ISBN: 978-1-5462-7625-8 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5462-7624-1 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2019900924

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This book has been written by Dr. Nicole Cvenkel who is the Founder and CEO of My Work & Well-Being Consulting, which is an HRM, Workplace Health and Well-being and Research Consulting Organization. You can visit our website at:

www.myworkandwellbeing.com.

Dr. Nicole Cvenkel also has two affiliate companies of My Work & Well-Being Consulting Inc. These affiliate partnership companies are: Recruit WELL Staffing Solutions and The Best WELL You Online Learning Academy.

Recruit WELL Staffing Solutions, provide recruitment services to exceptional people and employers in order to give our clients access to the best talent fit in the market in a timely efficient and cost-effective manner. You can visit our website at: www.recruitwellstaffing.com.

The Best WELL You Online Learning Academy focuses on empowerment, personal and professional development, that is geared towards engaging and empowering individuals to living life without limits. You can visit our website at: www.thebestwellyou.com.

CONTENTS

List of Acronyms

Preface

Acknowledgments

Dr. Nicole Cvenkel Biography

Foreword

Section One:   Mapping Employee Well-Being And HRM Terrain

Chapter 1:   Establishing the Employee Well-Being Research Territory

Chapter 2:   The Historical Development of HRM and Well-Being Research

Chapter 3:   Employee Well-Being at Work

Chapter 4:   Social Exchange Theories and Workplace Well-Being

Section Two:   Employees Experiences of Workplace Violence, Line Management Leadership, and Fun at Work

Chapter 5:   Employees’ Experiences of Workplace Violence: Insights for Workplace Well-Being, Stress, and Leadership

Chapter 6:   Line Management Leadership: Implications for Employee Well-Being at Work

Chapter 7:   Fun and workplace well-being: Insights from senior managers in a local authority

Section Three:   Striving Towards a Healthy, Respectful and Productive Workplace

Chapter 8:   The Relationship between HRM Practices, Employee Well-Being and Corporate Social Responsibility

Chapter 9:   From Employee Well-Being to Performance: A New Dimension for HRM

Chapter 10: Striving for a Violence FREE Workplace: Implications for a Healthy and WELL Workplace

LIST OF ACRONYMS

PREFACE

Promoting Healthy Workplaces: Well-Being Insights for Leadership, Engagement, and Productivity is as a result of limited research regarding employees’ perspectives and evaluation of HRM and Well-being at work. In response to providing business leaders with insights to employees’ experiences and reactions to HRM and Well-being initiatives, this book was designed to explore employees’ perspectives and reactions to Human Resource Management (HRM) practices, the Quality of Working Life and how such experiences have contributed to their Well-being at Work. The case studies explored in this book is from the public sector and local government context in North West England, and the Forestry sector in British Columbia, Canada. The experiences of these employees can be used and are applicable to all organizational settings. The underlying themes of this book include the need for organizational effectiveness through high performance best practice HRM practices as well as workplace well-being strategies and the elements of leadership as an integrating activity.

It is important first to discuss the motivation behind the choice of topic. My work experiences as an employee, lecturer, manager, researcher, administrator, and consultant have been varied and involved working for both national and international organizations in multiple positions within Banking and Finance, Management, Human Resource Management, Academia, Academic Administration, and Consulting. The last position held before the commencement of a career in workplace health and well-being was as an HRM practitioner. The responsibilities of this position propelled my interest in the area of well-being at work. Although the organization I worked for was committed to the adoption of best practice HRM practices geared towards the promotion of employee commitment and well-being, it did not appear that employees were committed to the organization, neither was their well-being enhanced. This was verified by high sickness absence reports, the evidence of high levels of presenteeism, high turnover rates and evidence of reduced performance. This propelled my interest as to whether employee health and well-being at work was something that could be explored further. To discover what "lies beneath" the high levels of sickness absenteeism, presenteeism, turnover rates and what appeared to be a lack of motivation and commitment from employees, impelled my curiosity about employees’ perspectives and reactions to HRM practices they were subjected to. I was also curious about how these practices and employees’ working life experiences contributed to employees’ well-being at work. These concepts propelled a fascinating journey through literature search and rigorous research in the pursuit to find out "what lies beneath the melting ice" of employees’ health and well-being at work.

At present, I am the Founder and CEO of My Work & Well-Being Consulting, which is a people-focused company committed to Workplace Health, Well-Being and Research. I am finding that I am doing exactly what I did as an HRM practitioner and lecturer – but with adults, and specifically with adults in the workplace. My job today, or purpose is to engage, empower, and promote lasting behavior change to unlock workplace health, well-being, performance, and potential by moving PEOPLE toward their higher purpose, potential, prosperity, and well-being.

My Work & Well-Being Consulting core values are captured in the acronym PEOPLE.

It is essential that leaders and managers clearly understand how employees feel about workplace stress, the pressure at work, well-being, and work-life-balance that are integral to your company for sustainable growth based on the principles of transformational engagement. Given the strong correlation between commitment, engagement, resilience, and financial performance, ensuring that employees feel looked after both physically and mentally has never been more vital to an organization’s health.

My preparedness and focus were assisted by regular discussions with employees from different organizations about their perspectives and reactions to high-performance HRM practices, well-being initiatives and the quality of their working life. I also reflected on my perspective and response to HRM practices, the quality of my working life experiences and well-being, as I had been an employee for over twenty years. This strengthened my determination to explore the literature and conduct empirical research in these areas. Simultaneously, I had continued focus group discussions and interviews with Senior Leaders from diverse organizations to get their perspectives on these matters.

The fundamental well-being goal is that employees would be present and productive at work. Britains, Canadians, Americans and most people around the world spend more than half of their time at work, and many are either at risk for or dealing with stress, illness or mental health – one of the most common and costly of all health problems. Best companies have long cited employee well-being as a vital element of a successful, happy workplace and an essential factor for engagement and productivity. The dimensions of well-being are interrelated, and by solving for the whole rather than apart, employers can maximize performance and make their organizations great places to work. Research shows consistently that employee well-being includes advancement, managerial and physical workplace considerations, as well as people’s physical and psychological health and well-being.

According to the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS), Canadian workers spend an average of 10.5 hours a day at work and commuting to and from work. Workplaces are an ideal setting for promoting healthy behaviors, and preventing disability and disease through healthy, safe work environments. Even more, healthy work environments improve productivity and reduce costs related to absenteeism, lost productivity, turnover, worker’s compensation and medical and disability claims. Federal and Provincial governments are now partnering with organizations to inform and enable the creation of healthier workplaces by providing tools and resources to help employers and employees create workplaces that support healthy choices and well-being.

The aims of the book are to:

1. To examine organizational policies and practices that relate to high commitment HRM Practices, working life and well-being at work.

2. To provide an integrated view embracing both theory and practice.

3. To investigate and interpret employees’ perceptions and reactions to HRM practices, social exchange constructs and well-being in the Public Sector.

4. To interpret employees’ understanding and meaning associated with workplace well-being and implications for management action.

5. To interpret employees’ understanding and experiences of workplace violence and implications for health, well-being, leadership and fostering a positive work environment.

6. To indicate ways organizational performance may be improved through better use of HRM practices, health and well-being strategies and the effective management of people.

It is a widely known fact that people are one of the most valuable resources or assets of an organization. Without people, an organization ceases to be effective. An organization is only as good as the people who work within it. Accordingly, the main thrust of this book is to present a management approach to workplace health and well-being based on workers’ perspectives, reactions, and experiences. This book is concerned with interactions among employees within the organizational culture, operations, HRM policies and well-being strategies, the process of management and the behavior of people at work.

While prior knowledge of HRM and Well-Being strategies would provide useful to the reader, it is not assumed. Neither is such knowledge a necessary prerequisite for an understanding of the concepts and ideas discussed in this book. It is hoped that the contents will appeal to managers, leaders, HR practitioners, and staff. It is also assumed that the contents will appeal to students at undergraduate, graduate or post-experience level in business or management, or other related professional courses. It is hoped that the book will appeal not only to those aspiring to managerial positions but to practicing managers and supervisors who wish to expand their knowledge of workplace health and well-being.

No single book could hope to cover adequately all aspects of what is a comprehensive and essential multidisciplinary field of inquiry, and it is not the intention to attempt to cover all aspects of individual or social behavior. Promoting Healthy Workplaces: Well-Being Insights for Leadership, Engagement, and Productivity concentrates on selected topics and core concepts of the behavior and management of people in work situations, and which hopefully meet the needs of the intended audience.

Dr. Nicole R. Cvenkel

CEO and Owner

My Work & Well-Being Consulting

Recruit WELL Staffing Solutions

The Best WELL You Learning Academy

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

First and foremost, I am tremendously grateful to my husband, Joze Cvenkel, my mother Gloria Baptiste, and my family for their continuing love, support, and encouragement.

A special thanks to Dr. Valerie Dye for invaluable guidance and support with the preparation of the Foreword for the book.

Particular acknowledgments are due to friends and colleagues, Dr. Jany Joseph, Dr. Colin McDonald, Casian Rawlins, and Adlin Joseph.

I greatly acknowledge the help received from organizational leaders and managers, who kindly provided information from their organizations, agreed to participate in focus group discussions and interviews. Thank you for sharing your insights, expertise, and stories. Each is an excellent example of an agent of change.

Particular thanks also go to all employees who participated in the organizational surveys, focus group discussions and interviews. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, insights, and stories. Your participation was invaluable to the successful completion of this book.

Lastly, I wish to acknowledge and thank all the people who contributed to the publication of this book who may be unaware how much their friendship and support have in a variety of ways helped in the completion of this book.

DR. NICOLE CVENKEL BIOGRAPHY

Dr. Nicole Cvenkel is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of My Work & Well-Being Consulting, an HRM, workplace health and wellness and research consulting organization (www.myworkandwellbeing.com). Dr. Cvenkel is also the CEO of two affiliate companies, Recruit WELL Staffing Solutions, a recruitment and executive search agency and The Best WELL You Inc., which is a global online learning academy that is dedicated to empowering, enlightening, and enhancing people’s lives through personal and professional development and coaching. Dr. Cvenkel is a Leadership Coach, Consultant, and Author. Dr. Cvenkel has decades of experience as a researcher, associate professor, academic administrator and HR professional in Canada, the UK, and other countries. She also has organizational, labor market and employment policy experience. Dr. Cvenkel has also spent more than eight years working in partnership with First Nations in British Columbia and Manitoba, Canada.

Dr. Nicole Cvenkel has a Ph.D. in Human Resources Management and Organizational Behavior. Her Ph.D. focused on employees’ reactions to HR practices, quality of working Life and implications for leadership and workplace well-being in the Public Sector.

Dr. Cvenkel has been working within the new landscape, leading new and best practices to achieve HR solutions, workplace health, well-being, engagement, diversity, equality, wellness, respectful workplaces, and performance. She is committed to working in partnership with organizations, to build on past achievements for successful and sustainable growth to enhance an organization’s most important and valuable asset – PEOPLE.

Dr. Cvenkel is completing her latest book, "Well-Being in the Workplace: Governance and Sustainability Insights to Promote Workplace Health." She regularly contributes articles to publications and academic journals on workplace health and well-being issues. She has given numerous conference talks and workshops and is passionate about helping employers and employees foster workplace health, wellness, and productivity.

As a John Maxwell Certified Coach, Trainer and Speaker, Dr. Cvenkel is an Independent Certified Coach, Teacher, and Speaker with the John Maxwell Team. Dr. Cvenkel can offer you workshops, seminars, keynote speaking, and coaching, aiding your personal and professional growth through study and practical application of John Maxwell’s proven leadership methods. Dr. Cvenkel is also a graduate of the Workplace Bullying Institute and an Affiliate of the Workplace Bullying Institute (WBI) and an expert in the complex phenomenon. That expertise is based on empirical research, principles of neuroscience and social sciences, and organizational best practices as introduced in the prestigious Workplace Bullying University. She works along with her clients to enable the achievement of their organizational strategic goals and objectives.

Dr. Nicole Cvenkel can be contacted at Nicole@myworkandwellbeing.com

FOREWORD

Dr. Valerie Dye

We live in an age where the demands for increased productivity in business and stiff competition in the corporate world drives workers to devote more and more time and energy to their jobs. The stakes are high as employees strive to climb the corporate ladder by putting increasingly more hours into their work. Historically little emphasis was placed on the well-being of workers, as the only concern was increasing the rate of productivity. Traditionally, the well-being of the worker was not an issue that presented a significant concern for employers. Well-being was considered as an issue separate and apart from the working life of the employee.

It is now becoming more evident that employee well-being is crucial to successful work life. Indeed, if one is serious about productivity and continuity as well as the retention of employees, then it is essential to focus on employee well-being.

From the perspective of the employee, since a significant portion of his/her time is spent on the job, the quality of his/her performance will naturally be affected by his/her general well-being. Stress from personal life as well as work-related stress may lead to physical and mental illness which affects the employee and by extension affects productivity. As such, focusing on productivity without focusing on employee well-being is counterproductive. Employers need to protect the health and well-being of employees by making efforts to reduce work-related stress, which often lead to depression, anxiety, and many other illnesses which in turn affect business. Furthermore, employees who know that their employers are concerned about their well-being may be more loyal and more productive. Even stress arising from personal experiences of the employee should be of concern to the employer, as it can affect performance.

Unfortunately, while many employers facilitate employee well-being in various ways such as promoting gym memberships and providing other opportunities for workers to reduce and manage stress, there are still many others who do not recognize the need to make significant efforts in this area. The failure to acknowledge this need results partly from lack of knowledge and awareness.

Consequently, this book on employee well-being is very timely as it presents research findings on the significant issues related to employee well-being and drawing from those findings, it offers examples and suggestions for improving employee well-being.

This book is even more timely as it arose, in part, out of studies conducted about Public Sector employees in England, as well as Forestry workers in Canada. Very little research has been done in the area of employee well-being among Public Sector employees and Forestry employees in Canada. The author, Dr. Nicole Cvenkel recognized the need for such research and this book represents an effort to fill the lacuna in this area.

Dr. Cvenkel is an experienced researcher, having obtained her Ph.D. in Human Resource Management from Roehampton University in the United Kingdom where she conducted extensive empirical research in the area of employee well-being. She has written several journal articles and academic work in this field. This work is a valuable addition to her existing academic work as it responds to an urgent need for research in employee well-being among Public Sector workers in England and Forestry workers in Canada. This book presents the findings of these research projects.

Even though one of the main aspects of the book is the research done with line management leadership and employee well-being at work. Alternatively, a similar study in the Forestry Industry in British Columbia, Canada the book also draws on research done in other parts of the world including the United Kingdom. The research findings highlighted is therefore applicable in every employment situation and any part of the world. The book provides real life as well as theoretical insights which would be valuable for both academics and practitioners. The book is divided into three sections with a total of eleven chapters. Section one sets the tone by providing an overview of the history of research on employee well-being and by providing a review of the literature in this field. In this section, the author examines the concept of well-being itself and discusses the fact that it is a multifaceted and multidimensional concept which includes elements such as financial well-being and stakeholder well-being.

Section 2 of the book offers a more practical perspective as it presents research findings from empirical studies conducted in the public sector and local government in England as well as the forestry sector in British Columbia, Canada. These studies focused on the issue of line management leadership and workplace well-being; fun and well-being of senior managers; and workplace violence and well-being and gives an expansive view of such violence in that it is not limited to occurrences at the workplace.

Section 3 of the book addresses the relationship between employee well-being and HRM Practices. This section also highlights the empirical approach in section 2, the book once again adopts a theoretical approach as it presents various theoretical and empirical approaches to providing for employee well-being. Issues such as the benefits of social exchanges including participation, teamwork and involvement in decision making, are presented as elements that lead to improved well-being of employees. This section also discusses the importance of Corporate Social Responsibility, the importance of work-life balance in enhancing employee well-being, and the importance of fostering a respectful workplace.

The final section of the book mainly summarizes the empirical and theoretical findings and highlights the importance of taking measures to protect and enhance the well-being of workers.

Employers and line managers will gain valuable practical insights from reading this book which is very timely in an era where employers are forced to give recognition to the well-being of their employees in a holistic way. While most provinces in Canada have enacted Occupational Health and Safety legislation which relates mainly to physical hazards and injuries resulting from the nature of their employment, some provinces are recognizing the need to focus on other aspects of worker well-being. In Ontario, for instance, the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act (WSIA) which has existed since 1997 has recently been amended to allow workers to make insurance claims for chronic and traumatic mental illness arising out of, and in the course of the worker’s employment. The purpose of the WSIA is to promote health and safety in workplaces, to facilitate the return to work and recovery of workers who sustain personal injury arising out of their employment or who suffer from an occupational disease, to facilitate the re-entry into the labour market of workers and spouses of deceased workers, as well as to provide compensation and other benefits to workers and to the survivors of deceased workers.

It is hoped that publications such as this one will help bring further awareness of the importance of such issues and influence the enactment of even more legislation to protect the well-being of workers.

Students and academics will also benefit from the theoretical and empirical findings highlighted in the book.

Dr. Valerie Dye

Chief Executive Officer and Senior Lawyer

Dye Law

Ontario, Canada

SECTION ONE

Mapping Employee Well-Being And HRM Terrain

CHAPTER 1

Establishing the Employee Well-Being Research Territory

Well-being in the workplace is one of the essential domains for contemporary organizations. Several reasons can be advanced for the importance of studying employee well-being at work. Historically in the late nineteenth century employers paid little attention to employee well-being, though there were some exceptions as some employers (Quaker Cadbury family and Lever Brothers) generally cared about employees’ well-being and introduced practices that assisted employees in the workplace and life outside of work (Cooper and Robertson, 2001; Newell, 2002). However, most employers at that time held a different view. Regarding employees as a necessity, but burdensome financial evil was a far more frequent phenomenon (Currie, 2001). Social and economic history shows that it took centuries to develop the employment relationship where well-being is recognized as an organizational responsibility (Cooper and Robertson, 2001). However, one often wonders if, under the organizational façade of putting people first, whether this attitude is still uppermost in contemporary employers thinking but is being stopped by the now pressing best practice and employment legislation standards, unions and human rights corporative.

The nature of global, technological, economic, demographic and social changes in the 21st century have affected, and will continue to affect work, workers and management in the coming decades as emphasis is placed on revolutions in business concepts and incremental progress, a little cheaper, better and faster (Armstrong and Brown, 2001; Berman et al., 2010; CIPD, 2008; Casio, 2010; MacDonald, 2005). These changes have transformed the way people live and work, revolutionizing the rules of the game by creating a 24/7 service work culture, resulting in individuals working longer hours and experiencing job insecurity. All of these have implications for increased work-related stress and negative well-being (ESRC, 2006; Green and Whitfield, 2010). ESRC (2010) further argues that the risk of losing jobs is greater in large organizations and has shifted from blue to white-collar workers with professionals experiencing much of the job losses.

Work-related stress is another salient principle of growing importance for policymakers and organizations, as the growing intensity and pressures of work are major problems facing workers in the 21st Century, contributing to rising demands and placing an ever-increasing burden on those of working age in the delivery of products and services (DWP, 2005; HSE, 2004, 2007a; 2009). The negative effects of the levels of stress and pressure experienced by individuals have health implications such as depression and anxiety, mental ill-health and other psychological and physical well-being factors, resulting in high cost to business and the public purse (MacDonald, 2005). Harrington (2013) states that stress is a generic term that can be substituted for apprehension, fear or anxiety, and stress is not limited to emotional experiences but also encompasses the psychological, behavioral and cognitive. Harrington defines stress as underisable and harmful to one’s health and well-being. Spurgeon et al. (2009) argue that ill-health relating to pressure at work doubled between 1990 and 2007 and highlight that stress is now the second biggest cause of employee absence behind musculoskeletal conditions. This view is echoed by the World Health Organization (1999), predicting soaring levels of stress and other mental health problems in the next few years (CIPD, 2010c; Grant et al., 2007; Thompson and Bates, 2009).

Stress, anxiety, and depression are part of an explosion in workplace mental health issues now costing the Canadian economy an estimated $50 billion a year in lost productivity. The Canadian economy also loses billions more in medical costs, with millions of Canadians suffering from a mental health disorder, which is now the fastest growing categories of disability insurance claims in Canada (Maclean’s, 2007; Mortillaro, 2016). The Conference Board of Canada (2012) states that mental illnesses are costing Canada about $20.7 billion in 2012 by reducing the number of workers available in the labor force. The cost is growing at a rate of approximately 1.9 percent every year and is expected to rise to $29.1 billion annually by 2030 (The Conference Board of Canada, 2012). Nationally, in Canada, an estimated 35 million workdays are lost to mental conditions among ten plus million workers. The annual cost of treating depression and distress is at $6.3 billion and $8.1 billion in lost productivity. Just as serious may be the issue of presenteeism – the phenomenon of stressed-out workers who show up to work anyway and accomplish little. It’s estimated to cost Canadian employers $22 billion a year (Maclean’s, 2007).

The United States workforce illness costs $576 billion annually from sick days to workers’ compensation. Forbes Business research reveals that from absenteeism due to illness, to the cost of disability and workers’ compensation and poor health costs the U.S. economy more than