Corporate Exercise Programs Improve Staff Member Wellness
Instituting a health promotion program improves the health of staff, reduces worker absenteeism and saves the corporation money, too. Learn more about beginning an worker health promotion program in the office.
Advantages of Wellness Programs
• A corporation investment of $100-$150 per worker annually to take part in an worker health promotion program can save companies $300 to $450 for each worker every year, according to Ron Goetzel, Director, Cornell University Institute for Health and Productivity Studies.
The savings can take several years to actualize, says Goetzel, and are seen in reduced health expenditures.
• The Health Promotion Councils of America announced a $24 return for every $1 spent on a corporation wellness program for small companies.
• As reported by a 2005 survey by the Art of Wellness, organizations who instituted staff member wellness programs realized a 30 percent reduction in medical and absenteeism costs in less than four years.
A successful health promotion program starts with business leaders. Corporation owners ought to lead by example, taking part in their corporation’s staff exercise program and working closely with a wellness coach.
Corporation leaders should be certain workforce are well aware about their wellness efforts, posting weight loss results or tobacco use cessation results on organization intranet or bulletin boards for everybody to see.
Employee Health Promotion Programs that Really Work
• Be sure to encourage workers to kick start their own wellness programs by visiting their physician. A complete physical should include information about blood sugar, cholesterol levels and general health.
• Target specific health-related concerns in a staff fitness initiative. Information about how to fight obesity, use of tobacco, alcoholism and drug abuse ought to be at the forefront of an staff member health promotion program, along with related conditions.
• Hire a wellness coach to instruct staff on how to lead a healthful lifestyle.
• Reward staff for participating in corporation wellness programs. Let staff accrue wellness points that they can redeem for prizes.
Make the prizes healthy, too- a free massage, private training session with the organization’s wellness coach or health food gift certificate encourages even healthier lifestyle choices.
• Acknowledge staff member health promotion leaders in corporation newsletters, in posted bulletins and on the corporation intranet.
Company Health Promotion Programs Yield Big Results
For company owners who want to elevate staff member participation in a company wellness program, consider Johnson and Johnson’s approach.
Faced with only 26 percent of personnel participating in their staff member wellness program, Johnson and Johnson offered personnel a $500 discount on medical insurance costs when they completed a health risk profile.
The number of staff participating in the Johnson and Johnson corporate fitness initiative jumped after they offered the incentive — to more than 93 percent.
Ron Goetzel encourages those looking to pitch a corporate exercise initiative to business leaders to use basic facts about the advantages of employee health promotion programs as part of their argument.
Keep it simple, and share results from other company’s worker wellness program success stories.
