Why You Shouldn't Ignore the 57% of Your Employees Who are Grieving

Republished from the Transform Operations & Leaders newsletter on LinkedIn

Redefining Grief

Did she know that more than 57% of Americans report experiencing a major loss over the last three years?

While you may think that those types of losses from death are the only grief events that your employees are experiencing.

You'd be wrong.

I recently heard a podcast episode that my friend and grief resilience expert, Alison Pena gave. And she pointed out that there are all sorts of grief events.

From a professional standpoint, grief might look like losing colleagues from a downsizing being passed over for a promotion.

She also said that grief is cumulative. So every instance of grief or loss starts to add up for an individual and that can impact how they show up at work.

If you're not actively creating a culture that acknowledges your employees' grief. And invest in grief support. You're likely experiencing productivity losses that are impacting your profits.

According to the CDC, unsupported grief in the workplace costs us companies over $225 billion a year.

And Gallup Healthways research shows that employees who don't feel supported by the corporate culture. With respect to their grief can be up to as much as 320% more likely to have what's called presenteeism, which means they show up to work, but their productivity is low.

Presenteeism refers to the lost productivity that occurs when employees are not fully functioning in the workplace because of an illness, injury, or other condition. Even though the employee may be physically at work, they may not be able to fully perform their duties and are more likely to make mistakes on the job.

(Source: Investopedia)

Return on Investment in a Culture of Support

Investments in creating a culture of support pay dividends for employers.


Gallup reported that companies where employees feel connected to the culture are 4x more likely to have their employees be engaged, and almost six times as likely to recommend their employers as great places to work .

Positive Employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS) can do a lot to drive down your recruiting costs and makes it easier for you to attract key talent.

(eNPS explained. Source: Academy to Innovate HR)

If you've overlooked these types of workplace wellness investments now is the time to give them another look.

I help corporations grow profits through leadership strategies that deliver innovation.


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