Enjoy these health and wellness articles which were written by industry leading wellness experts / wellness consultants to assist you in learning more about corporate wellness programs / employee wellness programs.
The need for, and benefits of employee wellness programs are well documented. More and more employers are starting employee wellness programs. We've created this wellness resource to assist you in starting employee wellness programs.
When starting employee wellness programs, many companies establish an “wellness committee” to provide guidance on all phases of employee wellness programs and provide ongoing support for all involved. Moreover, a wellness committee will enable you to gain direct employee input on your program by responding to the specific needs and wants of your worksite. If your company is small, consider working with other businesses, governmental agencies, or non-profit organizations to start a wellness council.
The National Institute of Health and Human Services recommends that wellness committees should generally include representatives from multiple organizational levels, functional areas, and other groups so that diverse viewpoints can be included in planning employee wellness programs. Consider recruiting people in your organization that have responsibility for some aspect of employee health or well-being (e.g., human resources, employee benefits, occupational health and safety, the employee cafeteria, employee unions), as well as people responsible for environmental and policy changes (e.g., facilities and operations, legal department).
The responsibilities of your employee wellness programs committee might include the following:
- Ensuring that all goals and objectives of your employee wellness programs are in line with Healthy People 2010 national objectives (see Healthy People / Employee Wellness Programs)
- Evaluating the current employee wellness programs, services and policies that are available at your workplace
- Assessing employee needs and preferences related to the employee wellness programs.
- Developing operating plans for the employee wellness programs, including a vision statement, goals, and objectives
- Assisting in implementing, monitoring, and evaluating the various activities of the employee wellness programs. Note that a minimal time commitment of one or two hours per month from each member is all that should be required.
Your wellness committee should review the Healthy Workforce 2010: An Essential Health Promotion Sourcebook for Employers, Large and Small. This sourcebook contains strategies, rationale and an exhaustive list of resources for developing, implementing, evaluating and investing in employee wellness programs.
Corporate wellness programs raise awareness and improve prevention among employees through a variety of interventions and messages. Many corporations have already implemented successful employee wellness programs, and more companies are looking to initiate their own approach to health improvement. These employee wellness programs are effective at improving health conditions, lowering risks for serious illnesses, improving employee morale, and saving money on medical claims, absenteeism and disability.
Employee health is a critical component of success for your business. With business health care related expenditures for employees consuming nearly 50% of business profits – and projected to double by 2012 – the health of the American worker significantly impacts the overall competitiveness of the American economy. With this in mind it would be foolish not to explore the possibility of offering various employee wellness programs to your employees.