“They feel relaxed and enjoy the experience, which is a nice thing to be able to say during a work day,” Fritz-Kalish says. “[It means] the whole day isn’t just about working for someone else, they have done something that nourishes themselves.”

Talk of “wellness programs” has been popularised in the past decade with the rise of tech giants and our increasingly digitised workforce, but it tends to evoke notions of free kombucha and nap pods, often drawing eye-rolls from workers fed up with superficial initiatives that avoid dealing with systemic problems of stress and burnout.

Past studies have found that employee wellbeing programs don’t lead to significant improvements in physical health markers, rates of medical diagnosis and job performance, despite participants reporting they engage in more positive behaviour, like regular exercise, or perceive themselves as healthier.

But in a post-COVID world in which personal health is at the fore, workplace wellness can be a lever to lure employees back to the office. Workers have relished the benefits of operating from home: a Fair Work Commission survey found only 5 per cent want to return to the workplace full-time. So while most offices are now diligent about hygiene measures and social distancing rules, drawing people in will take more than just plenty of hand sanitiser.

Allied health provider Better Rehab reopened its Melbourne offices in October and quickly expanded its wellbeing program (which includes wellness leave for self-care days and discounted gym classes) to launch a daily breakfast bar for its 80 employees.

Each weekday from 8am, the staff kitchen hosts a spread of cereals, pastries and fresh fruit – with hygiene measures in place.

Victorian manager Kyle Platek says the idea is to support good nutrition at the start of the day and provide the team a chance to socialise before they begin to work.

“Funnily enough no one spoke about it really in the beginning but in practice it’s the one we hear the most talked about. People seem to really bond … it generates some nice common ground,” Platek says.

Twice a month the menu is expanded – most recently, with bacon and eggs – while the business has also been arranging what it calls “magnet events”, such as “Fur Fridays” when staff can bring their dogs in.

“They’re a deliberate effort made to help bring people back in and be together,” Platek says.

Libby Sander, Associate Professor of Organisational Behaviour at Bond University, says in-office wellbeing measures can help entice people to the workplace, and ones that have a social or mental health element will be particularly effective.

“[It’s about] having purpose around the reason you’re going to the office,” Sander says. “I think employee wellbeing programs are very important and even if people aren’t stressed by the job, they’re stressed by what’s going on externally. So I think it’s as, if not more, important than ever.”

But these initiatives are unlikely to convince people to return full-time, she says, with a hybrid model expected to be most popular. “People have seen a new way of doing things … I don’t think it’s enough of a trade-off, two hours of commuting [every day] for a nice coffee machine and free gym at lunchtime.”

The new Sydney headquarters of business software company SAP ANZ is designed to emulate some of the positive impacts of working from home, says head of human resources Debbie Rigger.

Staff who choose to return have access to treadmill desks and a shared wellness hub called “The Nest”, which includes a reformer Pilates studio and an area for fitness and yoga classes, as well as health seminars.

There have also been layout changes to foster team collaboration and socialising, with table tennis and pool tables. “[It] has been designed like a big fun house and it feels like family.”

Ian Worthy, principal of strategy at commercial interiors design firm Unispace, says many organisations are reconfiguring the workplace to offer what can’t be experienced at home. Some offices are turning areas with rows of desks and closed meeting rooms into team huddle spaces, amphitheatres and flat rooms for yoga and mindfulness classes. Bike and car parking is also a focus.

“The return to work is much more purposeful than it’s been before. You don’t return to work [just] because it’s Monday ... Smart organisations are getting to understand that,” Worthy says.

So how can businesses avoid falling into the well-worn trap of gimmicky wellness programs?

Sander’s key message to employers is to implement wellbeing initiatives that staff actually want or are evidence-based, not fads, while remaining focused on the overall work culture.

Organisational psychologist Dr Amanda Ferguson is sceptical of work-wellbeing programs and cautions against measures to build resilience rather than genuinely helping employees.

“It’s like a bandaid. It doesn’t solve the problem [of resourcing and workload],” Ferguson says. “If you have a good culture and you have [wellness] perks … and they’re adding to your message, staff are more likely to buy into them. But if they think they’re just an overlay to a structural problem … you’re just breeding cynicism.”