What Work-Life Balance Means in 2022 — And Why Employers Should Care

Work-life balance is a term that has often been bandied about over the past couple of years. After all, there are a number of clear benefits that come along with a good balance at work, including better productivity, improved mental health, and the prevention of burnout for employees at your company. 

But as we move towards the endemic phase of COVID-19, many employers and HR professionals are now operating in unfamiliar territory. There are new SOPs to take note of, the unprecedented rise in hybrid and remote work models, as well as fresh challenges that the new, digitalised business landscape brings to the table. 

Despite this, work-life balance remains one of the most crucial aspects of a healthy work culture. At the end of the day, happy — and crucially, productive — employees are the foundation of any successful business. 

Here are a couple of key factors to ensure a good work-life balance for your employees in 2022. 

What exactly is work-life balance?

Imagine a seesaw, with personal and professional activities on either end. The idea is to have a decent balance between the two — although this is a rather subjective take on the concept of work-life balance. 

In essence, a good work-life balance is one where reasonable boundaries are set between an employee’s professional and personal life. Ideally, the latter does not get neglected, while professional productivity is maintained, or even improved. 

The rise of digital technologies such as cloud-based software and communications tools have since made this a more challenging aspect of work, however. Nowadays, it can be difficult for employees to switch off from work — particularly if they’re dealing with a fast-paced industry, or workplace. 

This simply means that employers are advised to be more conscious than ever about their employees’ work-life balance, and in a broader sense, mental health. 

Why is work-life balance so important?

A healthy work-life balance isn’t just about improving the quality of (personal) life for your employees. Instead, this can also be a major driving factor in employee productivity — and performance. Generally speaking, employees who have healthy work-life balances can be expected to perform better, and to make less mistakes in their daily work. 

To that end, let’s quickly discuss the benefits of a healthy work-life balance in your workplace: 

1. Better employee retention 

It’s important to understand that a good work-life balance for your workplace culture should also boost retention rates. Employees who have a good balance between work and personal lives are more likely to be happy at their job, and this is even more important in the digital age that we live in today.

This is a pivotal aspect, as replacing an employee can cost up to RM170,000 for the company — and a new employee may take up to 40 weeks to get up to speed, according to research from Oxford Economics. At the end of the day, it simply makes more sense from a business perspective to take care of your employees to retain them, rather than being forced to ultimately replace them (and all that comes with it). 

2. Less health problems: Burnout, anxiety, and work stress

Too much workplace stress can lead to anxiety, burnout, and affect the mental health of your employees. Of course, a certain degree of stress is to be expected in the day-to-day life of the average corporate employee, although this needs to be balanced with suitable time off for employees to reset and recharge away from work. 

In fact, a study conducted by UCL titled “Overtime ‘bad for your heart’” revealed that people who worked an extra three or more hours beyond a seven-hour day had a 60% higher risk of heart-related problems. And while overtime can be a necessity in certain lines of work, the study serves to highlight the importance of a balanced work-life. 

And if your company offers a healthy work-life balance, this also means that employees are more likely to go above and beyond during critical business periods — such as important campaigns, launches, and other peak periods. During (or rather, after) these busy times, a good idea is to offer employees time off to allow them to recuperate and rest. 

3. Better employee engagement

At the end of the day, ensuring that your employees have the right boundaries and balance at work ensures that your employees have the best chance of producing their best work. Employee engagement, naturally, plays a big part in that, with highly-engaged employees generally proven to be those that will go the extra mile for the success of the business. 

This, according to figures from the Temkin Group, translates to better business performance, with companies in the survey with strong financial results having 82% of engaged employees on board. Ultimately, employee engagement has been proven to be a critical factor in business success — which consequently spotlights the importance of employee engagement.