Ways to have a non-bummer summer in the workplace

Face it, it's hard to make the workplace a fun environment when sunny outdoor activities beckon. This perception is validated by a Captivate Network study that reports productivity goes down by 20 percent and attendance by 19 percent during summer months. To solve for these issues, a lot of companies have tried various options to fix the employee burnout that directly affects their bottom line. So which ones work?

Boost employee engagement

As revealed in a study by the Workplace Research Foundation, highly engaged employees are 38 percent more likely to have above-average productivity. In fact, increasing employee engagement investments by 10 percent can increase profits by $2,400 per employee per year.

However, 36 percent of businesses see engagement as a top challenge. To meet that challenge, use some tried-and-true methods for boosting employee engagement: Promote healthy activities. Create new goals for them to focus on. Pay more attention to your employees by giving individual attention.

Vacation, vacation, vacation

The number one best thing you can do for the summertime workplace blues is: encourage vacations to increase productivity.

With more than 55 percent of employees leaving days unused, America's no-vacation tendencies have created a stockpile of 662 million unused vacation days annually. The result? Worker burnout and balance sheet liabilities that directly affect a company's bottom line.

Although it might seem counterintuitive, according to Project: Time-Off nearly eighty percent of HR managers taut the value of vacations, saying that employees who take most or all of their vacation time are more productive in their jobs. They also claim that vacations lead to higher employee performance and increased job satisfaction.

Eighty-four percent of managers concur, saying that when employees take time off, they return to work with improved focus and creativity. A whopping ninety-one percent of senior business leaders agree as well, believing that employees come back from vacations recharged, renewed and able to work more effectively.

Protect employees outside the workplace too

Kids are out of school, and you and your family get busy enjoying longer days and more fun in the sun, parties and get-togethers. But for all the good times, sometimes reality can intervene with unpleasant results.

"Summertime is 'trauma season' for hospital ERs," according to one article.

During the summer months, there are definitely more opportunities for injury. As a result, children's traumatic injuries double, adult cases jump twenty-five to thirty percent, and there's a five to eight percent increase for your pets, based on Nationwide® claims data for 2015-2016.

Turn the summer frowns upside down

There's a potential for productivity decrease during summer, but you can help by removing employees' concerns about being hit with unexpected bills that can add to personal and financial stress, and consequently could decrease productivity even further.

Make sure all your employees' benefits are in place so that if something does happen, they are able to bounce back with minimal stress. That will help productivity return to normal and give them peace of mind so they can do their best work. You'll see the results in their smiling faces as well as the bottom line!