When Friday rolls around and your employees walk out the door, let them.

That means encouraging them to refrain from work for the entire weekend.

No calls. No emails. No paperwork.

Employees who can truly break away from work will feel refreshed come Monday.

A National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health report of collective overtime studies sums it up best: “Overtime was associated with poorer perceived general health, increased injury rates, more illnesses, or increased mortality.”

Studies show workers who treated their weekends like a vacation were more likely to return to work happier on Monday. As an employer, it’s wise to encourage your employees to not work weekends and actively celebrate their time off.

When your team is overworked and stressed, it shows up personally, professionally, and physically.

Here’s a deeper look at why encouraging employees to unplug over the weekend is a must:

You’ve hired good employees, so how do you keep them?

By treating them well.

Decent pay rates and bonuses are important, but it’s also paramount for people to enjoy their work environment and feel appreciated.

Hiring talent is just the beginning of your relationship with your employees. Treat them with respect from the start, and they’ll be more productive and stay longer.

Employers don’t have to offer extravagant displays of appreciation, either. While those are nice, it’s the simple thank you cards or little office changes employees notice most.

Here are 15 ideas of ways to treat your employees well:

Life gets busy.

As a result, our mental health often gets put on the back burner as it’s an unseen and easily forgotten aspect of health.

May is Mental Health Month, a perfect time to check in on your employees’ mental health status. It’s not necessarily an easy topic to discuss, but starting the conversation can lessen the stigma while providing education.

Sadly, less than half of working adults feel employers support employee well-being, a recent American Psychological Association survey revealed.

That lack of support can be devastating to employees, especially when you consider 1 in 5 Americans are dealing with mental illness.

If you want your employees to feel supported, here are six ways to focus on employee mental health:

Ah, time.

The ever-elusive intangible object we can never get enough of on any given day.

While it’s true we all get the same 24 hours in a day, some of us never seem to make the most of those hours. If you find yourself rushing between tasks or always running behind, it may be time to re-evaluate how you tackle your day.

Luckily, there are effective time management strategies that anyone can implement, including planning ahead, setting goals correctly, and getting organized.

Below, we offer insight into how to best manage time in a way that leads to a lot less stress!

With the warmer weather comes sunny skies and more outdoor activities.

It also means an increased chance of sunburn. 

May is Skin Cancer Awareness Month, a perfect time to remind employees that this most widely-diagnosed cancer is also the most preventable. Most skin cancers are caused by ultraviolet (UV) exposure, which comes from the sun, tanning booths, and sunlamps.

One in 5 Americans will be diagnosed in their lifetime with skin cancer, and between 7,000-8,000 people die from melanoma every year.

Luckily, most skin cancers are curable when caught early.

Share with your employees the importance of annual dermatology skin scans along with wearing daily sunscreen. You can also spread the word on how to spot early skin cancer warning signs.   

Here’s a look at valuable information to share with your employees this month:

Unfortunately, measles has made a comeback in the United States.

According to a recent Centers for Disease Control (CDC) media statement, current measles cases in the U.S. are the highest documented since measles was eradicated 19 years ago. Two recent outbreaks in New York and Washington State are to blame for the largest and longest-lasting cases since 2000.

As an employer, you may be wondering how you can protect your staff.

Fortunately, it’s as simple as encouraging the MMR vaccine, which protects against three diseases: measles, mumps, and rubella.

Here’s some insight as to what measles is, what the current vaccine recommendations are, and how to protect your staff.

Want to live to be 100?

It’s possible.

There are several “Blue Zones” around the world where longevity isn’t uncommon.

These areas prioritize healthy living, making it easier for residents to make healthy choices. This includes places like Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia, Italy; Nicoya, Costa Rica; Ikaria, Greece, and Loma Linda, California.

What if you could do that for your own employees and workplace?

In this article, we share the nine Blue Zones “secrets” of living a long, healthy life, and how you can bring those elements right into your workplace.

May is the perfect month to develop your company’s wellness program if you haven’t already done so. 

If you have a wellness program, rev it up by celebrating Global Employee Health and Fitness Month (GEHFM). This month-long celebration is a national observance of fitness and health in the workplace. 

Join in with other workplaces around the country. Here’s a look at the numbers: 

• 28,575 participants 
• 38 states participating
• 72 cities participating
• 6,621 companies & organizations participating

Below, we share how you can get your employees involved with four different weekly activities, and a celebration at the end of the month to wrap it up. 

Without a doubt, walking is one of the easiest ways to start exercising.

Even if you hate working out, walking is a great way to get into cardio exercise. Plus, a little walking is better than no exercise at all. It gets your blood flowing, strengthens muscles, and helps your body burn fat.

One recent study found that walking just two hours per week can start reducing your risk of disease that may otherwise shorten your life. 

Still need some convincing to get moving?

Here’s a list of 20 benefits of walking daily to share with everyone you know:

Stress can change your life.

And while there’s no avoiding stress, there are ways to alleviate it.

This is especially important since leaving stress unmanaged for too long can have a powerful impact on health.

Studies show that chronic stress can lead to serious health issues such as accelerated aging, digestive issues, and heart disease. Stressed employees often dread work, procrastinate, and experience mood swings.

Yikes.

The good news is, you don’t have to let stress get the best of you.

Next time you feel stress levels rising, we encourage you to try one of these stress relief activities.