Employee Well-being: Important Lessons From Career Counselors

This post was updated in September 2022

As a career counselor, you focus on the same things when helping job seekers research companies. You plan how to find out about salary, benefits, development opportunities, and company culture. But there’s a major factor that you might be forgetting: employee well-being.

2022 research by Gallup revealed that employee well-being is a new global imperative. For most global workers statements such as “living for the weekend,” “watching the clock tick,” and “work is just a paycheck” ring true.

This is why career counselors should help job seekers research well-being programs. Their primary focus is often money. Unless you educate them, they won’t understand how employment and wellness can go hand-in-hand.

Here are three factors your job seekers need to know about employee well-being programs:

Mental health matters

Even the best jobs can be stressful at times. Plus your job seekers have responsibilities and pressures in their personal life. Having access to mental wellness resources can make a huge difference.

This is why more and more companies are focusing their programs on mental health. Unfortunately, mental health issues still feel taboo to many people. Your job seekers might not be comfortable asking about potential psychological support.

Give them access to resources that provide inside information about companies’ offerings. For instance, Glassdoor has a feature that allows all current and former employees to list what type of benefits they received — including those addressing mental health.

Jobs are about more than a paycheck

Great jobs offer financial stability in more ways than one. They match retirement savings or provide personalized investment advice. For job seekers who aren’t natural financial whizzes, having these perks can take a real load off their shoulders.

Being less distracted by money helps people to be more focused and successful at work. 

If your job seekers could benefit from financial perks, help them determine which ones would help them the most. This will let them know what to look for when researching companies. Here are some options to let them know about:

• Credit monitoring

• Retirement planning

• College savings accounts

• Student loan repayment assistance
• Budgeting education

Appreciation is paramount

There are a lot of ways employers can show they appreciate their team members. Unfortunately, many of these methods are only tied to who they are as an employee. But, as you know, your job seekers are people. They deserve to be recognized as such.

This is why well-being programs can be so effective when it comes to employee appreciation. 

But as a career counselor, you know that each person needs different things to feel important. Have your job seekers identify what types of wellness programs will help them to feel valued. For example, if spending time with their family is important to them, a well-being program that allows spouses and children to participate will speak to them. It will also help them to enjoy their job more.

Wellness is important to everyone. Yet, many job seekers forget how health and exercise can tie in with their employment. This is why you need to help them research what potential companies are offering so they can find the right match for them.

What are some other reasons employee well-being is important to job seekers?