Studies on Direct Correlation Between Employee Wellness and Productivity in Workplace

Mr Edward Chia Bing Hui asked the Minister for Manpower (a) whether there have been studies conducted by the Government on the direct correlation between employee wellness and productivity in the workplace; and (b) whether there are any initiatives in place to measure the impact on employee wellness resulting from workplace transformation.

International studies have shown that there is a positive relationship between well-being and productivity. Since 2021, the Ministry of Manpower has been collecting data on mental well-being at the workplace via the iWorkHealth tool. The iWorkHealth tool is a self-administered psychosocial health assessment tool for companies and their employees to identify common workplace stressors. Based on responses from about 16,000 employees, we found that employees who experienced work stress or burnout (i) took about an additional 1.25 to 1.5 days of medical leave per year and (ii) encountered accidents or near-miss incidents about two to 2.5 times more, compared to employees who did not. In other words, when employers take care of employee well-being, they can expect to see lower absenteeism and fewer accidents.

As businesses and jobs transform, employers should design work processes and workplaces with the physical and mental health and safety of their employees in mind. We urge employers to tap on the iWorkHealth as one of the tools to address workplace stressors in the company. The Workplace Safety and Health Council is open to supporting companies that are interested in measuring the impact on employee well-being resulting from workplace transformation.