Workplace Wellness Programs | Benefits, Statistics & Tips

Introduction 

With the increasing focus towards employees' health, corporate companies are shifting their attention toward the development of wellness programs within their respective workplace environment. Workplace wellness creates a structured front through which to ensure that employees, working within a company or organization, remain conscious of their health and some of the possible health issues that they are likely to find themselves exposed. Additionally, workplace wellness also seeks to create active workplace health promotion activities aimed at ensuring that employees can build on their health. The development of such programs reflects more on trying to develop a new approach through which to ensure that indeed employees understand the value of promoting positive health. The ultimate expectation is that this will help towards boosting productivity, as the employees remain as being health conscious.

Wellness programs within the workplace environments can be categorized into multiple categories, which include primary, secondary, or tertiary prevention efforts aimed at enhancing an effective structure through which to maximize health promotion. The programs, implemented within a given company or organization, must be tailored to meet the basic expectations for the employees, which is to help improve their health. Additionally, the programs must also seek to provide employees with a permanent solution to the overall possibilities of reducing some of the health challenges that employees face as part of their career engagements. The focus of this project proposal is to analyze one specific wellness program that I would implement within my work environment as part of promoting health among the employees within the company. The project will seek to analyze how the program would be implemented, as well as, examining some of the benefits and challenges that are likely to arise in the adoption of the plan.

Health Consciousness in the Workplace 

The need for employees to achieve health consciousness has increased significantly attributed to a significant shift in the lifestyles that employees adopt as part of their respective roles and responsibilities. Baicker, Cutler, & Song (2010) argue that employees ought to remain health conscious while considering the possibility that their careers expose them to a wide array of health issues that may subject them to severe health impacts. That has created the need for having to focus more on the development of wellness programs within the workplace environment, which would be expected to develop that proactive approach through which to minimize their health risks. One of the critical health challenges that a majority of the employees face as part of their career engagement is weight gain, which exposes them to a wide array of health issues.

On the other hand, health consciousness is expected within the workplace environment while considering that some of the employees engage in behaviors that are likely to expose them to serious health risks. An example can be seen from increased smoking among employees within companies and organization, which is expected to result in a wide array of lung issues and cancer among others. The ultimate result of this is that it has become essential for the leadership within the companies are organizations to come up with practical approaches allowing them to develop workplace wellness programs. The development of these programs has helped towards building that useful framework through which to ensure that the employees achieve positive health with the aim being towards making on their health consciousness.

Workplace Wellness Program 

The workplace wellness program that this project seeks to adopt is an on-site fitness center, which is a center that is designed to focus on employee wellness as one of the ways through which to support wellness among the employees. The adoption of this program is seen as one of the means through which to ensure that employees not only build on their health as part of their engagement but also have a clear understanding of what is expected of them towards maintaining fitness. Additionally, the program will be designed in a manner that supports overall fitness with the view being towards maximizing on the generalized understanding of what it means to achieve positive health outcomes. The ultimate expectation of this is that it will help create a standard approach through which to ensure that the employees produce positive health outcomes.

The idea of having an on-site wellness center is seen as one of the ways through which to boost the demand for wellness among employees, as it seeks to ensure that indeed employees not only remain as being health conscious but offers them with a proximity platform to achieve the expected outcome. The fitness center will be complete with all the equipment that one would get within an ordinary center and a health team that manages all activities within the center. The health team will comprise of physical trainers for the employees that intend to engage in physical training as part of the perks for their engagement in the program. However, it is equally important to consider the possibility of having a nutritionist, who will help in providing the employees with a nutritional plan on how to maintain their health.

The main focus when focusing on the on-site fitness center is that majority of the employees find themselves in a position where they tend to spend significant amounts of time within the offices. Consequently, this creates a situation where most of these employees lack the time that would allow them to engage in some form of a fitness program; thus, exposing them to serious health issues. The company understands that the employees are not only expected to dedicate much of their time towards achieving some of their set goals and objectives but must also build on their health. That acts as a justification of having to adopt this idea with the view being that it will help in reducing the demand for employees to enroll in other fitness centers, as this center will offer them that platform for having to engage in fitness programs.

Some of the most successful companies around the world including Google, Chesapeake Energy Corporation, and Apple have adopted the idea of having on-site fitness centers within their offices, which has had tremendous impacts concerning improving productivity. The company would need to come up with a structured approach through which to ensure that the program is implemented as part of the corporate structure. The program will seek to create a new approach through which to provide that the employees build on their physical and mental health, which would have severe implications towards achieving the expected goals. The long-term benefit of the program is that it will help create a standard approach through which to enhance overall effectiveness in connecting with the employees.

How the program will be implemented 

The implementation of the program will take place within different phases with the focus being towards ensuring that the application not only achieves success but also reflects on meeting the expected goal, which is to promote workplace wellness. The first phase of the implementation would focus on stakeholder engagement with the specific focus being on the employees that are expected to benefit significantly from the program. The leadership would be expected to engage with the employees with the center being towards getting a clear understanding of their views concerning the adoption and implementation of the program. Through such engagement, it would be much more comfortable in determining how the employees would react to the possibility of this program being implemented as part of the company.

The engagement will also involve meetings with the company's board, as it must approve of the program before the actual implementation. It would be essential to consider the fact that the board would need to get information on how the implementation of this program is likely to help the company before it sanctions its execution. That means that the leadership, within the company, must gather as much data as possible on the benefits and challenges that are expected as part of the implementation of this program. The information will help in ensuring that the board can make effective decisions on what to expect after the actualization of the program. Additionally, the information will also contribute to highlighting some of the long-term expectations of the program after its implementation as part of the structured approach towards promoting employees’ health.

The second phase of the implementation of the program will revolve around seeking the necessary funding for the project considering that the fitness center will require equipment and space. On the other hand, the application may also require recruitment of trainers and a nutritionist, which is an aspect that may request funding from the company in a bid to ensuring that it achieves expected outcomes. The company may be expected to find ways through which to fund this program with the view that the program would likely have positive financial implications moving into the future. While considering the benefits, the company may be expected to withhold some of its projects with the focus being towards ensuring that adequate funds are redirected towards the actualization of this program. This program must be seen as being one of the key projects that the company must undertake as part of its approach towards improving motivation and productivity.

The third phase will involve a process of seeking a third-party consultant, who will be expected to oversee the implementation of the program including having to create the required space for the center, as well as, procuring of all equipment that will be needed as part of the program. The third-party consultant will have a crucial mandate towards providing clear guidelines on how the company is expected to implement the program to its fulfillment with the focus being towards maximizing on the general expectations of the program. Additionally, the consultant will also provide the company with a practical plan on how it would be able to utilize the program with the aim being towards meeting the set-out goals.

Benefits of the Workplace Wellness Program 

The implementation of the program will have several notable benefits for the company, which are essential to evaluate and consider as part of examining how the program is expected to affect the company. Some of the critical benefits noted include:

Promoting a Wellness Philosophy 

The first significant benefit of having to implement this program is that it will seek to promote a wellness philosophy among individual employees with the focus being towards ensuring that the employees become conscious of their health. Most of the employees find it challenging in their bid to promoting this philosophy due to a significant lack of time that would allow them to visit wellness centers (Mattke et al., 2013). The employees will also have the motivation of having to remain loyal towards the company considering that it is evident that the company, who is their employer, is investing in their health.

Boosting Productivity 

The second significant benefit of implementing the program is that it will help towards raising productivity among the employees, as the employees will benefit from regular exercise, which is one of the key expectations of the program. In a study by the Harvard Business Review, it was noted that regular exercise plays a crucial role in improving one's mood and concentration (Goetzel et al., 2014). Additionally, exercise tends to have a severe impact on learning abilities and memory while defining the overall probability of matching set out demands within the workplace environment. That is the same expectation for employees within this company, as they would have a higher level of concentration concerning their respective roles and responsibilities. The outcome of this is that the overall levels of productivity are much more likely to improve significantly.

Improving Employee Morale 

The crucial third benefit of implementing the program is that it will play a critical role in improving morale levels among employees with the focus being towards promoting their job satisfaction levels. It is essential to take note of the fact that employees tend to have the motivation to perform better if they feel that their employer seeks to care about their wellbeing (Parks & Steelman, 2008). In this case, the implementation of an on-site fitness center would mean that indeed the company cares about the health of its employees. Additionally, this will also serve as an indication that the company understands some of the health issues that employees find themselves exposed to while considering their career engagements. That is likely to act as a critical factor that boosts their morale towards their respective positions significantly.

Reducing Absenteeism 

The company faces a significant challenge concerning increased cases of absenteeism with most of the employees taking time away from the company as a result of health issues. Most of these health issues can be prevented by ensuring that the employees engage in regular exercise as a way of building overall prevention efforts for some of the critical health issues. The outcome of this is that the company finds itself losing significantly concerning the time that employees would have taken in their bid to achieve their set goals. However, the company would be able to minimize the need for having to take time off from work, as they would be engaged as part of the program that the company will be expected to adopt and implement.

Managing Stress Effectively 

Stress among employees is much more likely to have severe implications for their performance, as it creates a situation where it may become hard or challenging for them to concentrate as part of meeting their respective expectations. The American Psychological Association argues that improved mental health, through engagement in regular exercise, may have severe outcomes in boosting overall performance (Cawley & Price, 2013). In this case, the company is much more likely to find itself in a situation where it would have employees with lesser stress levels when compared to the levels noted before the implementation of the program. The general expectations are that employees will have a better avenue through which to engage in exercises as part of creating that useful framework through which to boost their abilities to deal with mental stress in a much effective way.

Challenges of the Workplace Wellness Program 

On the other hand, it is essential to consider some of the critical problems that the company is likely to encounter as part of its approach towards implementing and managing the on-site fitness center. Some of these challenges include:

Time Management 

The issue of time will be noted as being significant considering that the employees will be expected to find a balance between the time that they spend within the fitness center and the time that they are supposed to focus on their respective duties. Although the company may need to set out a policy on how the employees may use this facility, time management may serve as a vital issue of consideration, which may have serious adverse outcomes for the company moving into the future.

Cost 

Cost is a factor that the company may need to consider, as it will be expected to focus on finding funds to help in the setting up of the on-site fitness center, as well as, focus on finding funds that would be expected for effective management of the center. The company may find itself in a situation where it is spending significant amounts of money in managing this center, which may have severe impacts on its profitability margins. Before deciding on the implementation of the program, the company must come up with a clear approach through which to reflect on the cost margins of the program. That means that the company would need to consider all the necessary costs that it is likely to incur in the setting up and management of the facility to determine the overall viability of the program.

Conclusion 

In summary, corporate companies are shifting their focus towards the development of wellness programs within their respective workplace environment. The plans, implemented within a given company or organization, must be tailored to meet the basic expectations for the employees, which is to help improve their health. The workplace wellness program that this project seeks to adopt is an on-site fitness center. The idea of having an on-site wellness center is seen as one of the ways through which to boost the demand for wellness among employees. The main focus when focusing on the on-site fitness center is that majority of the employees find themselves in a position where they tend to spend significant amounts of time within the offices. Some of the key benefits that can be associated with this program include promoting a wellness philosophy, boosting productivity, improving employee morale, reducing absenteeism, and managing stress effectively.

References

Baicker, K., Cutler, D., & Song, Z. (2010). Workplace wellness programs can generate savings.  Health Affairs ,  29 (2), 304-311.

Cawley, J., & Price, J. A. (2013). A case study of a workplace wellness program that offers financial incentives for weight loss.  Journal of health economics ,  32 (5), 794-803.

Goetzel, R. Z., Henke, R. M., Tabrizi, M., Pelletier, K. R., Loeppke, R., Ballard, D. W., ... & Serxner, S. (2014). Do workplace health promotion (wellness) programs work?.  Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine ,  56 (9), 927-934.

Mattke, S., Liu, H., Caloyeras, J., Huang, C. Y., Van Busum, K. R., Khodyakov, D., & Shier, V. (2013). Workplace wellness programs study.  Rand health quarterly ,  3 (2).

Parks, K. M., & Steelman, L. A. (2008). Organizational wellness programs: a meta-analysis.  Journal of occupational health psychology ,  13 (1), 58.