Wellness

Employee wellbeing as a cost reduction strategy?

In an era of peak burnout, wellbeing is no longer aspirational, but imperative.

It wasn’t too long ago that the idea of workplace wellness was largely regarded as a nice-to-have; that only the Googles of the world had the means to proactively invest in employees’ wellbeing.

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But as organizations reckon with the ubiquity of burnout and its impact on worker engagement, retention, effectiveness, and profitability, it’s clear that ‘wellbeing as a nice-to-have’ is really only applicable to a work reality that no longer exists.

As we’ve explored previously, American work culture has reached an inflection point.

For the organization seeking advantage in a new era of work, employee wellbeing is proving to be anything but a luxury. It’s a baseline requirement to compete.

These are the trends that have us convinced.

It’s expensive to leave burnout unaddressed.

15-20% of turnover-driven total payroll costs are specifically attributable to burnout.¹ And with the cost to replace an employee being up to 3- to 4-times their salary, this means that a worker salaried at $75,000 could cost anywhere from $225,000 to $300,000 to replace.²‍

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(This estimate also doesn’t account for what happens when a key team member’s work is spread to a team of similarly burnt-out colleagues, and the increased likelihood of those team members leaving, too.)

With the recruiting process taking ~8-12 weeks, onboarding taking ~3 months, and new employees taking 1-2 years to be fully productive in a role,² the risk that burnout poses to business efficiency isn’t something that most businesses can afford to ignore.

Healthcare costs are rising for employers, and the conditions are preventable.

Healthcare costs for employers are slated to increase by double digits in 2025, which is the third year in a row we’ve seen a double-digit increase.³ 75% of these medical costs are due to preventable conditions.⁴

With chronic workplace stress being a significant contributor⁵ to disease in the United States⁶, an investment in wellbeing approaches–particularly those that emphasize
skillful management of stress–can reduce costs and the likelihood of health-related leave.

Employees that feel cared for are more likely to be productive, loyal, & profitable.

With 20%-40% of employees in large orgs being quiet quitters, this disengagement can add up to ~4% of the wage bill for the average organization.⁷

In the reverse of this, when employees strongly agree that their organization cares about their overall wellbeing, they are:⁸

· 4.4x as likely to be engaged at work

· 7x as likely to strongly agree they would recommend their organization as a great place to work

· 73% less likely to feel burned out at work very often or always

· 53% less likely to be watching for or actively seeking a new job

Investing in employee wellbeing is proven to generate ROI.

Harvard researchers have found that medical costs fall by $3.27 for every $1 spent on wellness programs.⁹ Similarly, the World Health Organization has found that for every $1 invested in scaling up treatment for worker mental health, there is a return of $4 in improved health and increased ability to work.¹⁰

At Aurra, we believe investing in employee wellbeing is one of the simplest–yet most powerful–ways to drive performance and advantage. Our logic is straightforward:

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✶ Better energy results in better engagement. Employees who are well-rested and nourished bring more focus, creativity, and endurance to their roles. High-quality inputs fuel high-quality outputs.

✶ Lower stress results in better retention. Organizations that take proactive measures to increase burnout resilience and psychological safety on their teams see higher rates of loyalty and commitment in their people. With the cost of losing an employee being 3-4x their salary, it’s indisputable that investing in measures to reduce your peoples' stress is far more cost-effective than having to replace them.

✶ Culture matters for attraction. 81% of workers say they would prioritize good mental health over a high-paying job, and 64% admit they would take a pay cut for a job that better supports their wellness.¹¹ Companies known for prioritizing wellbeing are better poised to attract top talent–and in a competitive job market, this only becomes more the case.

The future belongs to those who take good care of their people.

Progressive business leaders are already recognizing that wellbeing can’t be viewed as an afterthought—it needs to be a cornerstone of their corporate strategy. Companies that proactively invest in workforce wellbeing now will be poised to lead in the future of work.

Aurra partners with organizations to deliver high-impact wellbeing initiatives that enhance employee satisfaction and drive business results. Our approach blends short-term burnout resilience & stress relief with long-term culture change to transform your organization’s levels of engagement, retention, and attraction.

Explore how a wellbeing-driven approach can elevate performance for your teams:

‍Book a call with us to learn more.