Workers don't have a good feeling about their own well-being—although they do regard employer support as a positive.

That's according to the Health and Financial Wellbeing Mindset study from the National Business Group on Health, Alight Solutions and Kantar Consulting, which also finds that although 62 percent of workers feel negative about their well-being, they definitely want well-being programs at work, with 70 percent saying that's why they stay where they are and 80 percent categorizing them as a good business investment.

Incidentally, workers who regard their employee experience in a positive light are much more likely to regard well-being—financial, emotional/mental and physical—as important, compared with those who aren't positive about their employee experience.

While 61 percent of employees say they're doing everything they can to better and sustain their health, 62 percent don't have a positive view of how they actually are. And while that percentage of employees working on their own health is up nine percentage points since 2014, they don't feel in control of the situation, with only 55 percent saying they're in control of their health. That's down seven percentage points from 2018.

“Employees have incredible access to health and well-being information—from websites and apps, to wearable technology, to social media, there is no shortage of data, advice and opinions,” said Ray Baumruk, vice president of consumer experience research and insights at Alight. “But more may not be better. Employees appear to be feeling overwhelmed by information and that, despite their efforts, they are not progressing quickly enough to the well-being outcome they desire.”

In addition, just 40 percent feel in control of their financial future, and that's dropped six points from 2017. And 36 percent say it takes more time, attention and/or money to have a truly healthy life—with that number having risen 15 percentage points from 2014.

When it comes to mental/emotional health, 49 percent of workers had a positive view in 2018—but that lost ground, falling to just 43 percent in 2019. Losses in positive attitudes were also found in the other four categories of well-being surveyed: physical, professional and career, financial and social.

“There's been a shift from telling employees what they should do to manage their health risks to meeting employees where they are and offering what they need most to improve their well-being,” said Brian Marcotte, president and CEO of the National Business Group on Health.

Even though employees don't think they're doing better in any aspect of their lives—they're also more concerned about debt taking over their lives and being unable to prepare adequately for retirement—they go for those well-being programs, with the top three being paid time off exchanges, onsite medical clinics and personalized support for navigating healthcare. They seem to really need that last, considering that 42 percent say they regret a health decision that led to getting the wrong care or higher costs—and that's up 7 points since 2018.

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Well-being important to employees, even those who lack it

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