Employee Engagement and Well-being

Many companies focus on employee well-being, while others focus on employee engagement. The two concepts are slightly different, and companies should learn the difference to maximize effectiveness while utilizing the concepts. However, the goals of both concepts are pretty similar; to boost the employee’s productivity and the organization in general. Employee well-being refers to specific forms of wellness, including financial and physical, which are directed to workers to protect them and boost productivity (Krekel et al., 2019). Employee engagement refers to incorporating workers in decision-making while making them present and connected to the organizational objectives and goals.

Concepts in the Articles

The first article by Rasool et al. (2021) researched how toxic organizations affect employee engagement and how employee well-being and organizations to support can be used to enhance productivity in such toxic environments. The study was done in Chinese firms with a sample of 301 workers through quantitative research design. The study confirmed that a toxic work environment hurts employees’ productivity and engagement since the employees spread negative energy to others staff affecting the organizational operations. Furthermore, the study proposed that such organizations need an intervention in implementing policies to ensure employees’ well-being. 

Even if China is known to be authoritarian and rigid in terms of organizational culture, a toxic working environment will result in low productivity globally. Rasool et al. did not consider cultural factors. In this case, a toxic working environment is where antagonist, negative, or bullying behavior is baked into the organizational culture. The bullying behavior might be physical or physical, which implies negative energy translating to physical harm. Workers are stressed, less motivated, and lack communication in this environment. Physical injuries might also result from physical bullying and a lack of installed safety measures in the workplace. Psychological negativity resulting from stressors can result in depression, which might cause sickness.

The second article by Nakato (2022) investigated the relationship between employee engagement, psychological wellness, and job performance among Makerere University workers. The study randomly picked 100 participants from various departments in the university. A positive correlation exists between job performance and employee engagement. However, the study proposes further research on factors that could affect job performance since the positive correlation was insignificant. 

Employee Engagement/Well-being and Workers’ Health

Workers’ well-being and engagement require equal attention since they can contribute to the failure or success of a business. For instance, when workers are ill or emotionally affected, they find it challenging to engage in organizational activities. Likewise, assuming that an employee is struggling financially, he or she cannot be fully attentive in the workplace, which will negatively affect organizational productivity.

Factors Affecting Employee Engagement/Well-being

Factors that affect the engagement and well-being of workers include job satisfaction, work environment, leadership and management, and organizational culture. For example, a toxic work environment may harm employees by inflicting injuries on their bodies when working. In addition, if the leadership does not involve the employees in decision-making or opinions, employee engagement might be decreased (Anindita & Seda, 2018). Conversely, a satisfying job, caring management, and a safe work environment increase employees’ well-being and engagement.

IO Psychology and Employee Engagement/Well-being

In Industrial and Organizational Psychology, high employee well-being and engagement are positively associated with employees’ psychological well-being. Positive psychological well-being consequently leads to increased commitment to the work in the organization. Commitment to the organization increases overall productivity. Therefore, management in the organizations must minimize the work stressors in the work environment to employees’ psychological well-being.

References

Anindita, R., & Seda, A. E. (2018). How employee engagement mediates the influence of individual factors toward organizational commitment. Problems and Perspectives in Management, 16(1), 276.

Krekel, C., Ward, G., & De Neve, J. E. (2019). Employee well-being, productivity, and firm performance. Saïd Business School WP, 4.

Nakato, G. (2022). Psychological well-being, employee engagement, and job performance among workers at Makerere University (Doctoral dissertation, Makerere University).

Rasool, S. F., Wang, M., Tang, M., Saeed, A., & Iqbal, J. (2021). How toxic workplace environment affects the employee engagement: the mediating role of organizational support and employee well-being—international journal of environmental research and public health, 18(5), 2294.