If you read every e-mail that entered my in-box, you’d have a pretty bleak outlook these days as far as healthy workplaces were concerned. Take, for example, that according to the Conference Board of Canada’s 10th Learning and Development Outlook survey, spending on training, learning and development continue to decline in Canadian organizations (a full 30% decrease in training). And, according to a Harris/Decima survey, 34% of respondents said that work dominates their life. Compare that to the mere 12% who gave that same answer last year.

Then there’s the fact that 22% of Canadian employees are becoming less loyal to their employers, according to a new study by Ipsos Reid. That sentiment extends beyond the rank and file, with one-quarter of executives and managers also saying their loyalty is decreasing. It should come as no surprise then, that according to the recent Executive Quiz by The Korn/Ferry Institute, nearly half (47%) of employed executives indicated they are either somewhat or very dissatisfied with their current position. When asked what best describes employee morale within their company, 45% of employed executives said either “fair” or “poor.”

Those employees participating in health and wellness initiatives is also on the decline, according to the latest sanofi-aventis healthcare survey. This year, only 35% of workers took part in their organization’s health and wellness programs, versus 40% in 2008.

But I’m not here to spread doom and gloom everywhere. I sincerely believe that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Just take a look at this year’s Who’s Who in Workplace Health Awards winners for some inspiration. Beginning on Page 9, you can read about people who have informed and educated employers, instituted exciting and successful wellness programs and communicated their ideas in unique ways. Who knew that a mobile phone could help a person stop smoking, that one woman could inspire an entire university to take its health seriously and that Quebec has developed a consensus-based standard to address workplace health—the first of its kind in the world?

I do believe those lights at the end of our dark tunnel are rays of sunshine beaming through and are not from a freight train at all… at least that’s what it looks like from this distance.

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© Copyright 2009 Rogers Publishing Ltd. This article first appeared in the October 2009 edition of WORKING WELL magazine.