Our Top 14 Wellness Program Ideas for Employees in 2024

Let’s face it—workplace stress can easily get out of hand. And while what your employees do outside of work isn’t up to employers, company leaders are still responsible for setting their team members up for success.

How? By implementing effective employee wellness programs.

Join us at Thankbox as we explore 14 employee wellness initiatives you can kickstart for a happier and healthier team. From flexible working to wellness retreats, there’s something here for every team.

Let’s dive in.

What are employee wellness programs?

Employee wellness programs are initiatives designed to enhance the happiness and health of your employees.

The best part about these programs is that they are completely customisable and range from book clubs to flexible working hours, or even at-work naptimes. It just all depends on what your employees need and want.

The type of employee wellness programs we’ll suggest typically fall into the following categories:

Physical wellness: Addresses anything from exercise to nutrition to sleep.
Emotional wellness: Addresses mental health and psychological well-being.
Social wellness: Addresses positive social interactions.

Why are employee wellness programs important?

Improves employee health and well-being: First and foremost, healthy employees are happy employees. Employee wellness programs can pioneer a healthier work-life balance for your employees. They also encourage healthy habits, such as meditation or mental health support, that they might not have considered incorporating.
Enhances productivity: It’s pretty simple. When you take great care of your employees, they will be well-equipped to perform at their best at work. Wellness programs that promote healthy physical activity and mental health can lead to improved concentration, better stamina, and lower levels of stress among your employees. This doesn’t just mean a higher quality of work–it also reduces the occurrence of burnout.
Boost employee morale and engagement: Incorporating employee wellness programs is great for breaking the monotony of a regular workday. Your employees will feel valued and supported at work, which is essential for keeping them on board long-term.
Fosters a sense of community: Many employee wellness programs incorporate group activities, like fitness challenges, volunteering, or group outings. These collaborative activities can help build camaraderie and foster a beautiful sense of community among your colleagues.

Foster Employee Wellness With Thankbox!

Looking to enhance a sense of community and mutual support in your workplace? Look no further than Thankbox. In just a few clicks, your team can collectively contribute to a meaningful gift for a colleague.

Thankbox for teams

14 employee wellness program ideas

1. Celebrating employee success

Our first suggestion is incredibly simple and powerful—celebrating your employees’ successes.

This can be as simple as a congratulatory email or elaborate as a team dinner to celebrate a big win. You can also show your employees how much they matter by committing to celebrating Employee Appreciation Day.

Employees celebrating and taking selfies in an office

At Thankbox, we have a solution that helps your team consistently and sustainably practice employee appreciation. Whenever you feel the urge to say ‘thank you’, celebrate a birthday, or send a meaningful goodbye, you can do it as a team with our group e-cards.

You can add your own selection of GIFs, photos, videos, and sentimental messages to make it as special as possible.

Pro Tip: To promote employee wellness programs, you can incorporate wellness activities into your Thankbox recognition program.

2. Volunteer opportunities

Providing the opportunity for your employees to choose a cause that they want to offer a helping hand to is amazing for fostering a sense of fulfilment. Better yet, you can strengthen team bonds through shared wholesome activities such as donation drives or assembling care packages.

3. Health and wellness challenges

Workplace wellness and fitness challenges can be a great way to help your employees cultivate healthy habits, and indulge in some friendly competition.

You can consider:

Drinking 2L of water a day
10,000 steps a day
Starting a daily gratitude journal
5 minutes of meditation a day
7-hour sleep challenge
Random act of kindness challenge

4. Outdoor activities

It’s not called the great outdoors for nothing! If you have an in-office team, you can incorporate various outdoor activities monthly that get everyone mingling and moving. Spend time together outside the workplace with picnics in the park, hiking, biking, or even outdoor yoga.

5. Employee activity clubs

Setting up employee activity clubs is an amazing way to boost camaraderie and encourage your employees to dive into interests outside of work.

A few great options to start with are:

Book club
Cooking club
Sports club
Gaming club

6. Onsite massage therapy

It might seem excessive, but it can be worth the annual splurge. Offering massages at work can be a rewarding way to help reduce stress and muscle tension. Your employees will thank you for it!

7. Wellness Wednesdays

Consider dedicating one day a week to trying different wellness activities, such as group meditation, office games, or stress management workshops. This will make it more manageable for your employees to engage in new wellness activities.

8. Summer Fridays

Reduce working hours on Fridays during the summer months to allow your employees to experience more fun in the sun. This will give your employees extra time to relax and recharge, boosting their motivation at work.

Foster Employee Wellness With Thankbox!

Thankbox for teams

9. Flexible working arrangements

Encouraging employee wellness can be as simple as offering flexible working schedules. This way, your employees can take a break from a monotonous routine and find new inspiration. It’s an underestimated solution to decreasing burnout and increasing job satisfaction.

10. Virtual wellness retreat

For remote teams, a virtual retreat with workshops, webinars, and classes focusing on health can offer a refreshing day of connection and learning. This way, you can set them up to boost their remote working skills in the healthiest way.

11. Wholesome snack packs

Support healthy eating habits for your employees by bringing in healthy meals as often as possible. For your remote workers, you can send them meal subscriptions or carefully curated snack packs to keep them energised on those demanding days.

12. Online art therapy

For the teams looking to explore their creative side, consider offering virtual art classes. This can serve as a therapeutic outlet for your employees, and who knows—you might discover the next Picasso!

13. Employee field days

Organise creative employee field days with multiple activities such as fun team-building exercises, sports games, or friendly activities. It provides the perfect opportunity for everyone to de-stress and escape from the pressures of the office.

14. Financial counselling

It’s no secret that many of your employees may be struggling with financial stress. By offering appropriate resources, tools, and workshops to help with financial management, you can empower your team to achieve greater financial well-being.

Wrapping up

And there we have it—our 14 suggestions for wellness programs to keep your employees healthier and happier at work. Whether you have an in-person or fully remote team, you have some great ideas to share with your employees.

Why not start with getting everyone together to create a vibrant Thankbox e-card?

To make your celebrations more memorable, spice up your e-cards with flower bouquets and digital gift cards. The best part is that our gift cards have direct connections to 700+ retailers (including options to redeem cash as a Prepaid Visa), so your recipients can truly have a personalised experience.

What are you waiting for? Create a Thankbox today and watch your workplace light up!