The short answer
A useful employee wellbeing survey asks about working conditions, explains anonymity and leads to practical action. Cover demands, control, support, relationships, role clarity and change. Choose an appropriate questionnaire, offer understandable language and decide how you will share findings before you send it.
What could you ask your team?
These original examples illustrate workplace themes discussed in HSA guidance. They are not the HSA questionnaire, a validated scale or a replacement for ViscaCare’s existing team survey.
| Theme | Example statement | A practical response to explore |
|---|---|---|
| Demands | My workload is manageable within my working hours. | Priorities, staffing and competing deadlines |
| Control | I have a reasonable say in how I organise my work. | Decision-making and appropriate flexibility |
| Support | I can get support when work becomes difficult. | Manager availability and practical help |
| Relationships | People treat one another respectfully at work. | Behaviour standards and safe reporting channels |
| Role | I understand what is expected of me. | Responsibilities and conflicting instructions |
| Change | Changes affecting my work are explained clearly. | Communication and consultation before changes |
| Access to support | I know where to turn for confidential support. | Clear information about services actually available |
For your own informal prompts, a consistent response scale can make answers easier to compare. If using an established questionnaire, retain its wording, response options and scoring instructions rather than mixing scales or inventing cut-offs.
Choose the tool before choosing the questions
Start with the purpose: a general check-in, consultation about working conditions or a structured psychosocial risk process. HSA WorkPositiveCI is an established process with survey tools and action planning. ViscaCare’s team survey supports consultation and documented follow-through, but is a separate questionnaire and is not HSA-validated.
Keep questions neutral and focused on things the organisation can act on. Avoid diagnoses, medical histories, names and performance ratings. Do not add open-text boxes without considering how identifying details will be handled.
How do you protect anonymous answers?
Explain who can see the combined findings and keep participation records separate from answers. In ViscaCare, scores are shown only with at least five responses. Teams with fewer than five staff use dated process evidence and a signed owner review without scores. Larger teams below the response threshold also retain process evidence without scores.
Five responses is a reporting threshold, not permission to identify people. Avoid small subgroup breakdowns or asking colleagues which answers they gave. A low response count does not prove that staff have no concerns.
Include employees who work different shifts or languages
Explain why the survey is being sent, allow a reasonable opportunity to participate and include people who do not routinely open the app. Ask which language employees prefer. Use reviewed translations and keep questions equivalent across versions.
ViscaCare supports selected-language invitations where reviewed wording is available. Answers join the same anonymous results, not language-group scores. Translations support inclusion; they do not guarantee understanding or replace meaningful safety consultation.
What should happen after the answers come back?
Review broad themes alongside workplace evidence, agree actions and tell the team what happens next. If workload is a concern, examine deadlines and resources rather than offering a support line as the only response. Give each action an owner and a review date.
Use the ask, review, offer support and ask again consultation guide to document the process. Keep reports private and compare results only where questionnaire, scoring and coverage are comparable.
Put it into practice
- Agree the purpose and choose an appropriate questionnaire.
- Explain anonymity and offer reviewed language versions where available.
- Review broad themes without identifying respondents.
- Assign actions and a review date, then tell employees what happens next.
Question selection is only the start of listening and responding. Follow the full consultation cycle.
Common questions
What questions should an employee wellbeing survey include?
Ask about manageable demands, control, support, relationships, role clarity and change. Explain the purpose and how results will be used. The examples here are prompts, not a validated questionnaire.
Can we use these questions as a workplace stress risk assessment?
Not on their own. Feedback can inform an assessment, but employers still need to identify hazards, assess risks, implement controls and review them. Consider established tools such as HSA WorkPositiveCI with a competent adviser.
How are small teams protected in ViscaCare reporting?
Scores require at least five responses. Teams with fewer than five staff have process evidence and a signed owner review without scores. Do not divide reports into tiny language or other groups.
Should we translate survey questions for employees?
Offer reviewed language versions where available, with a clear introduction. Ask language preference rather than assuming it from nationality. ViscaCare combines answers anonymously rather than reporting by language cohort.
Sources
- HSA: what is WorkPositiveCI?
- HSA: Work-Related Stress, a guide for employers
- Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, section 26
Reviewed 8 November 2026. Employment, tax and healthcare rules change. We review these pages regularly, but always confirm details with the official source or your own adviser before relying on them. This page is general information for employers - it is not legal, tax or medical advice.
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