Does your organization walk the talk on employee health?
January is an ideal time to take a new look at old resolutions. And, if you’re like most Canadians, many of these are health-related— eating better, losing weight, quitting smoking or getting more exercise.
Once the post-holiday guilt settles in, it usually starts out well. You pack your gym clothes along with your coffee mug and head off to work each day with a renewed commitment to your daily exercise regimen. Then, one day, you stay at work late, and when you finally leave, you tell yourself that you’re too tired to even think about exercising. Suddenly, it’s several months later and your running shoes are gathering dust in the corner of your closet.
Each individual must ultimately be responsible for his or her own health. But the million-dollar question is, To what extent does—or should—the employer play a role?
Estimating conservatively (assuming a 7.5-hour day and 220 workdays per year over a 40-year career), the average worker will spend roughly 66,000 hours at work. In terms of potential productivity, that’s nothing to sneeze at. That’s why many employers are exploring the benefits of health promotion in the workplace.
In addition to the possible advantages of a more productive workforce with less absenteeism and fewer disability claims, employees value workplace wellness initiatives. The 2008 sanofi-aventis Healthcare Survey found that those who rate the quality of their health benefits plans as excellent are much more likely to have access to a wellness program at work—an indicator of the role these programs can play in attraction and retention.
Cost is always a factor, but health and wellness promotion doesn’t have to be an exorbitant proposition. For example, some organizations raise or sponsor teams for charity runs and walks. Others hold fitness challenges, giving employees pedometers to track their steps and encouraging competition between departments.
Getting buy-in and participation from senior management is important to the success of any initiative. It’s not just a matter of telling your workforce to be healthier; employers need to lead by example. Taking that extra step could make a real difference to your employees—and to the cross-trainers in their closets.
Alyssa Hodder is Editor of Benefits Canada.
Do you have a great strategy for improving employee health in the workplace? Email me at alyssa.hodder@rci.rogers.com
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© Copyright 2009 Rogers Publishing Ltd. This article first appeared in the January 2009 edition of BENEFITS CANADA magazine.