Workplace keeping its employees well
Employers may be cutting back on budgets and staff, but what they're keeping they're making sure is in top form. Wellness programs from cholesterol screenings to yoga classes are thriving in the workplace. Alex Cohen reports.
Yoga students pose in class (Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images)
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Kai Ryssdal: The high profile health-care debate probably has a lot of people thinking about the insurance benefits they get at work. But copays and deductibles are only part of the package. Cholesterol screenings, support groups to get people to stop smoking, and yoga are in the mix at some companies as well. They're generally grouped under something called wellness programs. And even though a lot of places have been cutting their budgets, those wellness programs are thriving. From KPCC, Alex Cohen has more.
ALEX COHEN: At L.L. Bean's headquarters in Freeport, Maine, there are mandatory stretch breaks for employees several times a day. The outdoor outfitter also offers its workers pilates classes, circuit training, kayaking and tai chi.
Susan Tufts is the company's wellness manager.
SUSAN TUFTS: We subsidize healthy foods in our cafeterias and our vending machines. We've done a lot of smoking cessation, nutrition education, weight management, stress management.
This fiscal year, revenue at L.L. Bean is down nearly 8 percent. The company recently cut part of its travel budget and eliminated about 150 jobs.
Susan Tufts says they won't be slashing their wellness program, even though it costs more than a million dollars a year.
TUFTS: One of the things that's made our program so successful is the long-term commitment. And I think when times are the hardest that's when we see people stand up to the plate and say, 'This is the right thing to do. It's important for the company, it's important for our people.'
According to a Met Life survey done last year, 57 percent of companies with 500 employees or more offer wellness programs.
Ron Geraty is chief executive officer of Alere, a wellness management company. He says many employers are currently starting new wellness programs or beefing up existing ones.
RON GERATY: Most employers, especially the larger employers, have found that good health is good business.
Geraty says fewer than 5 percent of the employers he works with have cut back on wellness programs. Reason number one: on average, wellness programs are pretty cheap.
GERATY: Roughly we're talking about a dollar per month per employee.
For that amount, Geraty adds, employers receive a strong return on their investment. He cites recent findings from the National Business Group on Health.
GERATY: Companies that provide integrated health and wellness program had 20 percent higher revenue per employee, five times fewer sick days, improved productivity across the board.
Wellness programs do require patience. It usually takes several years after beginning one to see positive financial results. And measuring those results can prove a bit of a challenge.
Ron Goetzel is director of Emory University's Institute for health and productivity studies. He says you can measure a program's impact by comparing participating employees with non-participating ones. But they have to be close matches.
RON GOETZEL: People who are very, very similar in terms of their demographic, their health care utilization patterns, their disease severity.
Of course, such comparisons don't account for the hereditary effects on health, or for what employees might be doing to take care of themselves off the clock.
That said, Goetzel still views wellness programs as a smart investment. One he believes can save companies $2 to $3 for each $1 spent. And he says, it's not just about the bottom line.
GERATY: With layoffs, reductions in force and so forth, they need to keep their employees healthy, motivated, focused and productive.
Especially when employers have to cut jobs, he says, best to make sure the employees you keep on are both physically and mentally healthy.
I'm Alex Cohen for Marketplace.
Comments
Comment | Refresh
From IL, 09/24/2009
All of the things listed in the article are fine as long as the decision is left to the individual to decide if they want to participate, not by making it mandatory. By taking away the choice you take away freedom. Remember your history and how this great country was started. "I'd rather die on my feet than live on my knees!"
From Ashland, KY, 08/17/2009
As a Registered Dietitian, I am so happy that workplace wellness is becoming more popular! The benefits of lifestyle modification are too numerous to name, but overall, the improvement in quality of life is priceless! In my book, "How To Eat Fried Chicken and Be Thin Too" I address the 4 most important components of an overall healthy lifestyle change. For more information, the book can be found on Amazon or at strategicbookpublishing.com/HowToEatFriedChickenAndBeThinToo
From Sherborn, MA, 08/15/2009
As the owner of a health promotion company that provide onsite wellness programs and fitness center management for many corporations in the New England area, we are also finding that even in this economic climate, companies are not slowing down in their efforts to improve employees health and ultimately help control health care costs. This is a great article to help support this and we appreciate seeing this published.
Iris Sokol/President
Fitness Works at Work, Inc.
www.fwaw.com
From Modesto, CA, 08/13/2009
I've been an instructor of Tai Chi since 1986. Like many teachers and health professionals, I've been waiting for a time when the value and tremendous benifits of Tai Ch would be finally recognized and implemented by corporations and businesses. Aside from the fact that I never get a cold, Tai Chi boosts the immune system, I feel a lot younger than my actual age. Our students report the same. Tai Chi helps to slow down, to concentrate, to move every
muscle and joint, to become aware of oneself mentally and physically. People come after work looking tired, they leave class looking energized, happy and ready to tackle the next day with confidence. A great idea to have Tai Chi at the workplace - finally a way out for people who have had absolutely no time to take care of themselves and end up having serious health problems( heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, back and shoulder pain.
From Las Vegas, NV, 08/12/2009
I am a certified professional coach and personal fitness trainer. I want universal health care and in this economy I'm still waiting for people to realize how much power they have over the price. In many way, the cost of health care is a direct reflection of how well we take care of ourselves. I'd like to see incentives for companies and health care organizations who promote self care strategies and individual responsibility for personal health. It's time we stand up and help each other take care of ourselves instead of waiting for health insurers and politicians to clean up the mess we make when we don't.
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