Setting up a wellness program at your company shouldn’t be burdensome. And if you need some encouragement that it will pay dividends, turn to Rand Corp.’s recent Workplace Wellness Programs Study, which found that for each $1 invested in a workplace wellness program, $1.50 is returned.
There are several levels of activities that you can offer, depending on how involved you want to be, from blood pressure screenings to weight loss to smoking cessation programs.
“It’s important to really assess health risks that are impacting your own employee population,” says Amber R. Hulme, Medical Mutual Vice President for Central and Southern Ohio. “Wellness programs also help with absenteeism — they help make people feel better and make them want to come to work. The better you feel, the more you are engaged.”
Smart Business spoke with Hulme about how to start a workplace wellness program.
Where do you start? Do you check with your insurance provider for resources and incentives?
Yes — do that initially. You want an official baseline of your employees’ health risks. A baseline is easy to achieve with a health screening and health assessment questionnaire, which is often done online.
Health screening is vital so people know their numbers. But the health assessment is where you really get the data behind the screenings. A minimum of 30 employees is a good number to establish a baseline.
Are wellness programs suitable for companies of any size?
Yes. Obviously, the larger the employee base, the more data you can work with. For example, Medical Mutual can provide a report showing the percentage of tobacco users, diabetics or overweight employees based on a large enough sample size. You can then develop a wellness program that addresses the primary concerns of your employee population. The program can include incentives to encourage employees to go to a gym or participate in other fitness-related initiatives. But a wellness program can work regardless of the size of the company and doesn’t require an on-site gym. If you do have a gym, that’s great, but it doesn’t mean you have to have one. There are plenty of creative ideas that can be used to make a great wellness program.
What about a company culture factor?
Making wellness part of your company culture is important; employees should feel that it’s an initiative from the top. The culture of the organization really needs to change to be more focused around lifestyle behaviors that make employees healthier.
Another thing to consider is how to best communicate with your employees. Survey your employees to find out what type of communications would help drive their performance.
Should a company offer incentives for employees to join the wellness program?
Use your survey to learn about what rewards are worth the extra effort. Don’t just throw a large amount of money at employees with the expectation that it will engage them.
You may be surprised how a small incentive or recognition by the company can promote participation. Allow your employees to participate online to select the wellness programs. Consider having an employee wellness committee. Ask employees to get involved, so it’s not just coming from management, but from everybody. Having all levels of the organization involved in trying to improve their health is important to a company.
What is the final step?
Make sure to have senior management buy in. If you get your CEO or CIO or whomever involved and active in the wellness program, employees can share in the experience with someone at that level. This upper-level buy-in can encourage participation because employees feel they are all part of the same team.
When employees see that management cares enough about wellness to participate, it makes an impact. And that participation can lead to positive communication and interaction.
A good wellness program impacts everybody in the company, no matter their job title. It puts everyone on the same playing field because we all go through the same struggles.
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