Employee Well-Being Guide: Stress, Safety, and Action

Perceptyx’s research team has released a comprehensive new guidebook, Employee Health & Well-Being: A Guidebook Series for Listening and Action, that brings together years of Perceptyx research, client success stories, and evidence-based strategies to help organizations build cultures where employees thrive.

This practical resource combines insights from our ongoing Workforce Panel and Perceptyx's 2025 Benchmark Database —, comprising millions of global respondents —, to provide actionable frameworks that HR leaders can implement immediately. Inside, we discuss a number of our most interesting findings. For example, employees who intend to stay at their organizations are 2x as likely to feel their organization cares about their health and well-being. That insight, along with dozens of other data points and strategies detailed in the guide, shows why leading organizations are moving beyond surface-level wellness perks like gym memberships and meditation apps to embed health and well-being into the core of their employee experience.

In this overview, we'll explore key insights from the guidebook, including the real costs of neglecting employee well-being, proven strategies for building a supportive culture, and how to measure the impact of your initiatives. The full guidebook provides detailed implementation plans, survey templates, and additional case studies to help you transform these insights into action.

What does employee well-being look like right now?

The guidebook reveals a mixed reality for workplace well-being today. While roughly 70% of employees feel their organization cares about their health and well-being, and 3 in 4 report they are able to balance their work and personal lives, there's a concerning gap: around 35% report neutral or unfavorable perceptions when asked whether their stress levels at work are manageable.

This disconnect between organizational caring and actual stress management shows that good intentions alone aren't enough. Without structured follow-through, even well-meaning organizations risk higher burnout and voluntary turnover. Organizations need systematic approaches to employee listening and action to close these gaps.

What does it cost to neglect employee well-being?

Employee health and well-being directly affects business performance. Our research shows that when employees experience lower work-related stress, they are 1.4x as likely to report high life satisfaction compared to those who experience work-related stress more frequently. Those gains in life satisfaction translate directly into stronger performance, productivity, and retention.

We've identified four critical mistakes organizations frequently make:

• Lack of Holistic Strategy: Many organizations implement wellness apps or gym memberships while ignoring the root causes of employee stress. True employee well-being extends beyond physical health to include career fulfillment, social connection, financial security, and community belonging. Addressing systemic issues like workload management, role clarity, and organizational culture has far greater impact than peripheral wellness benefits.

• One-Size-Fits-All Approaches: Effective well-being strategies must be inclusive and flexible. Gathering employee input ensures your initiatives meet diverse needs across your workforce.

• Failure to Address Systemic Issues: Organizations that practice continuous listening can identify and address the root causes hindering employee well-being in real time, rather than applying reactive, short-term fixes.

• Overlooking Impact of Leadership: Managers and leaders set the tone for what's acceptable and expected. Providing targeted specific training and structured support equips managers and senior leaders to actively champion their teams' well-being.

How do you build a culture that supports employee well-being?

Our research has identified several evidence-based strategies that organizations can implement to create meaningful change:

Design jobs rich in resources

We've found that engaged employees are 1.3x as likely as less engaged employees to report having the resources they need to do their jobs effectively. Three critical resources drive both employee engagement and well-being:

• Social support: Foster both job-related support and emotional support from colleagues through team-building and collaboration. Social connection is one of the most frequently overlooked dimensions of workplace well-being, yet a sense of belonging among peers directly influences satisfaction, retention, and day-to-day resilience.

• Autonomy: Increase employee control over decision-making, methods, and scheduling wherever possible.

• Regular feedback: Deliver clear, constructive input on performance and development.

Our data shows employees who report having at least some level of autonomy are 1.2x as likely to feel their organization cares about their health and well-being. When employees have the highest level of autonomy, this jumps to 1.5x as likely.

Create psychological safety

Psychological safety, defined as the ability to share thoughts, suggest ideas, and take smart risks without fear of negative consequences —, forms the foundation of workplace well-being. Our data reveals that employees who feel their organization cares about their health and well-being are 2x as likely to report feeling safe to openly express their opinions.

In psychologically safe workplaces, employees experience:

• Lower stress levels

• Greater job satisfaction

• Higher overall well-being

• Reduced workplace hostility and loneliness

• Increased transparency and trust

Recognize and value contributions

We've identified a critical gap: only 69% of employees agree that they receive recognition for their accomplishments. Meaningful recognition goes beyond making employees feel good. It also helps them understand how their work contributes to something larger.

Our research shows that employees whose work allows them to contribute to something meaningful are 1.5x as likely to have high life satisfaction as those who do not feel their work allows them to contribute to something meaningful.

How should organizations listen throughout the employee lifecycle?

Employee well-being isn't static. It evolves throughout the employee lifecycle. We recommend tailoring your approach to five critical Moments that Matter:

• Recruiting and Hiring: Signal your commitment to well-being early. Include wellness benefits in job postings and provide realistic job previews that honestly describe both opportunities and challenges.

• Training and Onboarding: Structure onboarding to reduce stress through clarity, resources, and connection. Include modules on well-being resources and implement buddy systems to foster support from day one.

• Performance and Development Conversations: Reduce anxiety through clear competency models and balanced feedback. Employees who report having manageable work stress are 1.4x as likely to report understanding how their performance is evaluated.

• Organizational Change and Peak Periods: Help employees navigate transitions with proactive change management. When employees feel that change is managed effectively, they are 1.7x as likely to feel they can manage their work stress.

• Resignations and Exits: Exit data reveals concerning trends. Employees reporting unmanageable work stress increases from 8% at onboarding to 33% at exit. Similarly, unfavorable perceptions of work-life balance jumps from 7% to 26% from onboarding to exit.

Measuring what matters

We've developed a comprehensive measurement framework for tracking well-being initiatives across three levels:

Employee Sentiment Indicators measure immediate perceptions through pulse surveys and other listening tools:

• Increased perceptions of health and well-being as a company value

• Improved work-life balance ratings

• Decreased work-related stress scores

• Higher physical and psychological safety ratings

• Increased use of well-being and health offerings

• Reduction of burnout

Group-Level Indicators show near-term impact through HR metrics:

• Reduced overall absenteeism and presenteeism

• Improved rates of PTO usage

• Decreased average shift length or overtime

• Fewer safety incidents

Outcome Indicators demonstrate long-term value through business metrics:

• Reduced medical costs

• Lower absenteeism and presenteeism costs

• Positive employer reputation

• Higher firm performance and productivity

Learning from success stories

We've worked with organizations that have successfully transformed their approach to employee well-being:

• HVMG implemented a multi-channel listening strategy that helped them surpass Perceptyx benchmarks for well-being by 11 points and achieve turnover rates 2% below industry average.

• Hanger Inc. created "Healthy Hanger," a holistic well-being ecosystem that saw administrative staff attrition drop by 4% and work-life balance sentiment increase from 10% to 35%.

• Emerson boosted their well-being index score by 12% in one year through creative, localized initiatives driven by employee feedback.

• Noridian introduced "Well-Being Wednesday" and expanded bereavement policies based on employee input, increasing perception of organizational commitment to well-being from 72.9% to 81.8%.

Each success story demonstrates how organizations can adapt these strategies to their own culture and challenges.

Frequently asked questions

What is employee well-being?

Employee well-being measures how employees experience work and life overall. It covers physical health, mental and emotional state, work-life balance, stress levels, and whether employees feel their organization genuinely supports them. Perceptyx research shows that roughly 70% of employees feel their organization cares about their health and well-being, yet around 35% still report neutral or unfavorable perceptions of whether their work stress is manageable. That gap shows well-being goes beyond providing wellness benefits. It requires addressing workload, role clarity, psychological safety, and organizational culture.

What are the main areas of employee well-being at work?

The main areas of employee well-being at work include:

• Stress management: Around 35% of employees report neutral or unfavorable perceptions of whether their work stress is manageable.

• Work-life balance: Three in four employees report they are able to balance their work and personal lives.

• Psychological safety: Employees who feel their organization cares about their health and well-being are 2x as likely to report feeling safe to openly express their opinions.

• Recognition: Only 69% of employees agree that they receive recognition for their accomplishments.

• Autonomy: Employees who report having at least some level of autonomy are 1.2x as likely to feel their organization cares about their health and well-being, and that rises to 1.5x at the highest level of autonomy.

• Meaningful work: Employees whose work allows them to contribute to something meaningful are 1.5x as likely to have high life satisfaction.

These areas interact with one another, and improving one often strengthens the others.

Why does employee well-being matter to business performance?

Employee well-being matters to business performance because it shapes both retention and productivity. Employees who intend to stay are 2x as likely to feel their organization cares about their health and well-being, and employees with lower work-related stress are 1.4x as likely to report high life satisfaction. When organizations fail to act, the costs can include absenteeism, reduced productivity, higher turnover, and rising healthcare expenses. Results from client organizations show measurable returns: Hanger Inc. reduced administrative staff attrition by 4%, and Emerson increased its well-being index score by 12% in one year.

Your roadmap to better employee well-being

Organizations that embed well-being into their culture retain more employees and draw measurably higher performance from the ones who stay.

Beyond the insights shared here, our complete guidebook includes:

• Survey question banks aligned to the Perceptyx People Insights Model,

• Manager conversation guides and training materials,

• Implementation timelines and change management strategies,

• ROI calculation templates,

• Additional research data and benchmarks, and

• Links to supplementary resources and tools.

Across every data point in this research, one pattern holds: employees want to work for organizations that genuinely care about their well-being. And when organizations deliver on this expectation through systematic, strategic action, both employees and businesses thrive.

Ready to transform your approach to employee health and well-being?