Birkbeck HR innovation research saves NHS Wales Organisation over £730,000 per year and boosts employee wellbeing
The research paper, titled “The last resort: reducing avoidable employee harm by improving the application of the disciplinary policy and process,” is available in Frontiers in Psychology.
New research supported by Birkbeck, University of London, reveals that changes in HR practices, specifically avoiding disciplinary investigations as a first response and instead utilising informal resolution methods through training, coaching, and mentoring, can significantly improve employee wellbeing and reduce sickness absence.
By implementing these changes to HR practices, Aneurin Bevan University Health Board, an NHS Wales organisation employing over 16,000 staff, saw a 71% reduction in employee investigations, over 3,000 fewer days of sickness absence annually, and savings exceeding £730,000 per year.
Dr Kevin Teoh, Senior Lecturer in Organisational Psychology at Birkbeck, commented: “The findings support wider research which show that we need to focus on improving the working environments and experiences of healthcare workers as a key part of supporting their wellbeing. Often the response has been that this is not possible, or that nothing will really change. However, this intervention provides evidence demonstrating that we can, and should, make such changes.”
The health board’s HR and employee wellbeing teams collaborated to support those overseeing disciplinary processes. They promoted informal resolution methods through training, coaching, and mentoring, significantly reducing formal investigations.
The research underscores the detrimental impact of poorly designed and implemented organisational policies on employees. It advocates for a proactive HR approach to foster a cultural shift towards minimising employee harm by improving policy application and processes.
Andrew Cooper, lead author of the study and Head of Programmes for the employee wellbeing service at the health board, stated: “This research highlights the importance of taking a last resort approach when considering the use of formal HR policies. We know that the related processes can harm the individuals involved in them and the organisation can also be negatively impacted too. By handling these processes better, we can reduce harm to our employees and organisational cultures.”
Executive leadership at Aneurin Bevan University Health Board supported the new approach, working with line managers and union representatives to cultivate a compassionate, person-centric investigation process. This initiative emphasised learning and growth when addressing workplace issues.
Over a year, from June 2022 to June 2023, the number of new disciplinary investigations decreased from 50 (a few years prior) to just 15. The cost savings from avoiding these 35 investigations are estimated at £738,133.
The research paper, titled “The last resort: reducing avoidable employee harm by improving the application of the disciplinary policy and process,” is available in Frontiers in Psychology. The authors of the research are: Andrew Cooper (Aneurin Bevan University Health Board), Kevin Teoh (Birkbeck, University of London), Ruth Madine (Aneurin Bevan University Health Board), Adrian Neal (Aneurin Bevan University Health Board), Aled Jones (University of Plymouth), Ammarah Hussain (North East London NHS Foundation Trust), and Doris Behrens (University for Continuing Education Krems).