2024’s Top Wellness Trends for Workplace and Beyond

So far, in 2024, many businesses and individuals with disabilities have embraced trends that encourage wellness.

While some of these trends specifically focus on the health and welfare of disabled employees, others target different aspects of a person’s life.

Whatever their derivation, all of them have one thing in common – to make the lives of people who suffer from long-term or permanent impairments significantly better.

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But what are these trends, and how can they benefit you?

Here are five of this year’s top wellness trends for the workplace and beyond that have been real game-changers for many disabled people.

1. Move into Specialist Disability Accommodation

A significant trend that has developed this year is for more people to move into specialist disability accommodation.

There are several reasons for them to do this, including the opportunity to live in a fully accessible home that offers better liveability than people might previously have enjoyed.

Although several providers offer this service, SDA with Vertika has been an option many have taken up.

2. Greater investment in caregivers

Another key trend that has emerged in 2024 is a greater investment in caregivers. More specifically, this is an initiative that has come from companies who are looking to enhance their corporate wellness programmes in an attempt to keep top talent.

Increasingly, businesses are recognising the need to provide comprehensive caregiving support to their employees, who have to balance their work commitments with caring for children, elderly parents, and other family members with health issues.

Some of the main ways they have invested in caregivers include providing staff with professional emotional support, flexible schedules, and tailored benefits.

By doing this, businesses have created a culture of empathy and understanding, ultimately rewarding them with greater staff loyalty and less stress-related sick leave.

3. Increased flexibility towards WFH

Along with a greater investment in caregivers, many companies offer their employees, and in particular, those afflicted with a disability, the flexibility to work from home.

This eliminates their commute times and any issues getting to work. It also means they do not have to navigate through offices that might not be as accessible as they could be daily.

Additionally, the increased flexibility to work from home provides disabled people with greater accessibility to the workforce, both within their country and abroad.

4. Holistic wellness

The term holistic wellness might have been around for a while; however, in 2024, it was thrust into the spotlight in the corporate world.

Traditionally, the concept of health and wellness revolved around physical well-being. However, it now encompasses all other aspects of health, such as mental, emotional, social, spiritual and financial.

Increasingly, many workplaces are incorporating a holistic corporate wellness programme to ensure their employees, including those who are disabled, are well supported in times of need.

Subsequently, many now offer programmes based on everything from debt relief and nutrition to counselling and fitness classes.

Additionally, they recommend digital technologies, such as wellness apps, YouTube videos, and podcasts, that can help them better cope with anxiety, stress, and burnout.

5. Financial Wellness

Many people have felt the pinch of the rising cost of living in 2024, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that many have prioritised financial wellness.

Essentially, financial wellness relates to wealth generation and ensuring that a person doesn’t suffer from money-related stress. If they do, they are 34% more likely to be late for or absent from work, according to SHRM.

In addition, those suffering from money worries have twice as many sick days per year as those who are more affluent. Given this, many businesses have realised how much money this costs them yearly – upwards of $500 billion in lost productivity in the United States alone.

The financial wellness benefits businesses offer range markedly depending on the company. Some provide access to workshops that assist their employees in devising a relatively simple and cost-effective way to set up a basic strategy to achieve their financial goals.

However, others go so far as rewarding their longer-serving employees with inducements that reduce their student loan debt or current tuition fees.

At the same time, on an individual basis, a rising number of people seeking financial security and independence have also embraced apps and tools which offer on-demand financial mentorship and advice to meet their monetary goals.