Does your company have an employee wellness plan or program already in place? Maybe you’ve been on the fence about whether or not the cost-benefit is worth it.
Or perhaps you’ve been so busy getting your POU business off the ground you haven’t had time to really jump in and consider whether or not a wellness plan or program would benefit your company.
No matter the reason, here’s what we know— investing in your employee’s health and wellness is a smart move. Who doesn’t want happy and healthy employees?
We all know a happy and healthy employee is more productive and consistent. It can also help support a better work culture, so why wouldn’t we do what we can to support our employee’s health and wellness?
What Is a Wellness Program or Wellness Plan
A wellness plan or program is a plan or program that helps employees stay healthy or helps them to improve their health.
Wellness programs could focus on ideas that address specific problems like smoking cessation or weight-loss.
A good plan will take a holistic approach to employee wellness and could include a range of benefits like:
- Access to onsite gyms or gym memberships
- Yoga classes
- Healthy lunches
- Employee assistance programs
- Nap areas
- Wellness adventures
Wellness programs and plans are provided in addition to health insurance.
Why Focus on Employee Wellness?
Surveys show 80 percent of companies in America have some employee wellness plan in place. In companies with 200 or more employees, that figure jumps to 92 percent.
If your company falls into the percentage that doesn’t have a wellness program in place, then you may be losing potential employees to those that do have a plan in place.
But having an employee wellness plan isn’t just about attracting and keeping good employees who consider it a benefit they’d like to have at work. It also benefits the company and improves your bottom line.
Here Are Five Ways a Wellness Program Can Help Your Company
1. Decrease Absenteeism
A wellness plan can curb absenteeism. Absenteeism equals loss in productivity. But if a worker comes to work sick, not only are they less productive, but they spread germs throughout the office to everyone else.
This usually causes more employees to get sick. Finding ways to support healthier employees and prevent illness equals less absenteeism and higher productivity.
2. Improve Morale and Productivity
A wellness plan can improve morale and productivity. Endorphins released during exercise improve the mood.
Employees who are happy and maintain a positive outlook are the kind you want to have working for you. They tend to be more energetic workers, better at problem-solving, and more productive.
3. Strengthen Company Culture
Non-work activities can strengthen company culture. Employees who participate in non-work activities together tend to have stronger relationships.
4. Increase Employee Retention
Employee retention increases. When a company invests in their employees’ wellbeing, those employees feel valued. A feeling of being valued, combined with a positive attitude toward work, makes employees more likely to stay at their jobs.
5. Save Money
Your company can save money. Although your company will have to invest money into a wellness program, you can see a financial return on your investment.
In fact, studies show for every dollar spent on wellness activities and programs, and employers save $3.27 in health care costs.
Ready to Get Started on Developing a Program or Plan
Hopefully, you are convinced it’s time to shift your attention to this part of your business strategy. And, because companies are not required to provide employee wellness plans or programs, there are no rules or regulations businesses must follow regarding these plans.
So, that’s why we thought we would provide some guidance to get you started. Therefore, here are a few insights and tips about how you could go about creating a sustainable employee wellness program or plan.
- A wellness program could be ongoing or one-time events or activities.
- You can organize a wellness program in-house or contract with a business to provide and run an employee wellness program for you.
- The program’s success begins with management. When managers walk the walk, their employees are likely to follow.
- A plan should focus on overall wellbeing, not just physical health. Consider ways to address stress management, resilience, and mindfulness.
- Create wellness awareness by using health risk appraisals, posters, flyers, videos, text messages, email notifications, Internet sites, payroll stuffers, magazines, lunch and learns, special speakers, company newsletters, blogs, or other forms of communication.
- Make sure your approaches are genuine and clear. Employees or potential employees will avoid anything that feels phony to them.
- Strive to make the workplace environment more positive, teamwork-oriented, and collaborative.
- Listen to what employees want out of a wellness program.
After you have a program in place, make sure to get employee feedback so you know what is working and what you can toss because there’s no reason to invest money and time into something that isn’t beneficial.
Keep It Simple and Easy
Design a program that is on a scale for your company’s capacity can handle easily. Include incentives for employee participation.
Interestingly, although many employees say they want access to a wellness program, many don’t use it. Reward those who attend with prizes, points, cash, or paid time off.
Find out if your insurance company will reduce the cost of health care premiums for those who participate in specific programs.
As you know, employee wellbeing should be a vital part of any business strategy. You’ve taken the time to invest in the basics of your business. So, now it’s time to get down to the more subtle aspects.
Workplace wellness can come in many forms:
- Policies
- Benefits
- Other resources
So, no matter what route you choose, it will improve your company’s overall work environment and have long-term benefits for your business.
We Can Help
We hope this article has inspired you to develop a great wellness program for your employees. And remember, we’re here to help you! We can help you with your premium water dispenser needs whenever you need us!