Canadian HR Reporter

CANADIAN HR REPORTER December 14, 2015 6 NEWS employees would consider before choosing an employer, said Karley Middleton, wellness consultant at HUB International STRATA Ben- efits Consulting in Winnipeg. "When it comes down to it, compensation can be negotiated and benefits can be matched, but knowing that your employer actu- ally cares about you is a differenti- ator for employees now," she said. "Employers are starting to real- ize — either legislatively or just through competing for employees — they're starting to realize that they do play a big role and they need to be responsible." So how much responsibility should employers take on? "I wouldn't go so far as to say that they need to be responsible for their employees' health, but they need to be responsible for giving the employees every possible op- portunity to improve their health. It's more about giving the employ- ees access to resources, promot- ing a work-life balance that allows them the freedom to explore those resources, and really just putting everything out there possible so that the employee takes owner- ship and accountability because really, in the end, it has to be that individual effort that really changes their behaviour," said Middleton. Whether they're doing it be- cause of legislation or because they're competing for employees — or because it's their culture to care about employees — it will have an impact, said Middleton. "Whatever the reason is, I think (employers) are starting to recog- nize that their role is much bigger than they anticipated initially, and that it's not as difficult to fulfill as some think." It doesn't mean employers need to dictate the details, said Michelle Johnston, employee wellness ex- pert and founder of Working Well in Toronto. "Do employers owe the em- ployee a responsibility to tell them what to have for a healthy lunch or how to be more fit? Maybe not. But working in 2015 is extremely stressful — there are a lot of pres- sures put on families and put on in- dividuals, and there's a lot of stress that comes from work." Most Canadians are now living with an uncomfortable level of daily stress in their lives, she said. Work is really stressful and em- ployees do feel something needs to be done. "But we're also talking about the ability to have the time to care for yourself, so stress and nutrition are two things that tie in there. People don't take the time away to go have lunch, so they're not actu- ally even nourishing themselves. "ere is a responsibility for the employer to provide an environ- ment in a workplace that allows people to take care of themselves. Right now, there's just no space for that. ere's been no space created for that." Innovative health So how can employers integrate health and wellness into their own workplace — without breaking the bank? For the most part, in- novative health solutions arise in response to a common problem, said Middleton. "In my experience, a very com- mon issue in terms of putting in place a wellness program is bud- get. It's never quite recognized on its own, it either needs to be in- corporated into benefits or some other initiative that's going on. So it doesn't tend to get as much fi- nancial support," she said. "We're trying to find ways with- out using high budget dollars that you can still get some impact." Employers can also find inno- vative wellness solutions by sim- ply communicating with employ- ees to find out their priorities, said Johnson. "Engaging their employees, asking what their employees re- ally want is probably number one. A lot of times, assumptions are made or just a simple sur- vey is done, which is a very one- dimensional approach. So they might have contests where they ask people to submit ideas or they might do focus groups to get the employees' information. at's re- ally where the innovation comes in, because that's where the idea meets the need really well. And it's not just an idea being created in a silo," she said. "Innovation really happens when employees are allowed to kind of voice their opinion around what they want." 'Employer's role bigger than anticipated initially' Leaders need to adjust perceptions HEALTH SURVEY < pg. 1 opportunity becomes available." Other concerns about over- qualified candidates include their expectations for higher levels of compensation and lower engage- ment levels. "Employers are often con- cerned that the individual would get bored in this job because it's not challenging," he said. "at can be a frustrating situation for the candidate, if they've been looking for a job for awhile and here's a job they know they can do, and actually because of their expe- rience it's a job they could easily do, but they're being rejected be- cause of all these concerns. at's a difficult thing to deal with." An adjustment in perception would do wonders for the issues of unemployment and underem- ployment, said Berrin Erdogan, a fellow at the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP) in Portland, Ore. "I truly believe that overquali- fication gets an overly negative perception in the minds of man- agers," she said. "It's very easy to dismiss these employees, to think they're a flight risk, but I think or- ganizations can benefit a lot from hiring the best person they can have for their current and future needs. I think there are a lot of advantages." Overqualification for a position can lead to resentment, frustra- tion and anger, said Erdogan, and it has been negatively linked to engagement, retention, job satis- faction and company attachment. However, it's possible to mitigate these consequences, she said. "ere are ways to hire over- qualified people but then immu- nize your organization against its harmful effects." An honest conversation about expectations is crucial. Discussing the realities of the role and how it could expand — and allowing the employee to influence the scope of the position — create a sense of empowerment, said Erdogan. And a sense of autonomy can signifi- cantly mitigate against the negative consequences of overqualification. "ey can be a bargain to hire. e company is hiring somebody with greater skills while staying within their budget. You're getting more for your money." That investment can pay off later, said Erdogan. "ese employees are meeting the current needs of the organiza- tion but they also have the poten- tial to meet the future needs of the organization as well. It is typically the most effective way to grow your own talent rather than acquire it from the outside. So, if your com- pany is growing, if there's going to be growth opportunity within the company, these employees can ac- tually be great future employees as well as current employees. "You can feed into the talent pipeline and they can become the future leaders of the business." People take part in a free weekly yoga class on the front lawn of Parliament Hill in Ottawa in July. REUTERS/Chris Wattie No one ever expects to have cancer. When it strikes, having CAREpath as part of your benefit package shows your employees and their families how much you really care. Employees diagnosed with cancer are assigned a personal oncology nurse providing guidance and support throughout every stage of their cancer journey. CAREpath is the only complete cancer navigation provider in Canada. No one ever expects to have cancer. cancer? Does one of your employees have We'll be there. 1-866-599-2720 www.carepath.ca THE CANCER ASSISTANCE PROGRAM Anita McGowan, RN, CON(C), OCN Head Oncology Nurse Manager OVERQUALIFIED < pg. 3 "ey are responsible for giving employees opportunities to improve their health."

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