Christmas is a wonderful time of year for households across the UK – but it can also present stress, as people try their best to prepare for the festive season while working through the busiest season of the year. According to a recent study of 1,000 UK workers, 73% of respondents were worried that work would spoil their festive mood.
Many factors contribute to this statistic, from the hectic nature of work during the Christmas period to the number of holidays taken by colleagues, and even the weather itself.
As a manager, executive or business owner, it is in your interest to ensure that your workforce is as free from stress as possible, and that they feel valued as they go the extra mile before the Christmas break – for morale, staff turnover and even quality of work.
Work/Life Balance
The first step you can take in order to ensure your staff feel valued is structural. Christmas is near-guaranteed to be a busy time of year, and it is likely that members of your workforce will be putting in overtime to ensure their workload is completed – despite wishes to spend time with family in what is otherwise a special time of year.
By paying attention to the workload and hours worked of your staff, you can take measures to alleviate their stress – whether re-allocating workloads and enacting a “no overtime” policy or allowing long lunches and early finishes throughout the month.
Christmas Socials
Enabling your staff to engage with each other socially is a crucial way to improve morale in the office, thereby reducing stress. A Christmas social or party is a great way to do this, as well as an excellent incentive to carry on working through the tough period.
The social itself can be a place for employees to decompress, and shed the stress of the previous month ahead of a new year – and if the social, including food and some drinks, is paid for by the company then they will feel valued and rewarded for their hard work.
Gifts
A swift and easy way to show your employees that they are valued by you and your business is to buy them little gifts here and there. Rather than gifting hardworking employees a large, relatively expensive present, reward progress and effort with more, smaller items – this way, the frequency of gifts will ensure they do not forget that they are valued.
These small gifts could take many forms, but there are ways you can reward your entire staff without said gifts losing value: you could put together a selection of different gifts, and separate them using Christmas themed gift bags to make more personalised packages for your employees.
Alternative Ideas
There are myriad ways you can support your staff in the Christmas period, and little gestures go a long way. Something as simple as buying lunch for your team on a busy day can go a long way – and it may be possible for you to arrange a deal on gift vouchers with another organisation, giving you the chance to offer tangible returns to your staff for little upfront cost.
