If you work in an office environment, chances are you’ve seen people twisting in their chairs to crack their backs, getting up to walk around after sitting too long, and complaining about back pain. And regardless of what kind of setting you work in, you probably start having a lot of employee absences once the cold seasons hit.
But what if you could help your workforce improve their health and so become happier and more productive—and save money on healthcare and sick leave while you’re at it?
With a corporate wellness program, you can do just that.
But just what benefits does working out at work offer, and how does Sarah’s Personal Fitness deliver them?
What Corporate Wellness Can Do For You
Corporate wellness programs can save employers money on a slew of health-related expenses, but the benefits also extend beyond savings to help foster a workforce that’s happier, more motivated, and feels more like a team.
Let’s start with the costs that a corporate wellness program can reduce.
The American Journal of Health Promotion found that companies with wellness programs pay 25% less for health plans, sick leave, disability insurance, and workers’ compensation.
A Harvard review confirmed these findings, stating that every dollar that a larger company spends on wellness saves $3.27 on medical care and $2.73 on employee absences. That’s a return on investment of $6 for every $1 spent.
Where do these savings come from?
A wellness program works to get employees to regularly exercise and make lifestyle adjustments that improve their health. This can mean group training, nutritional education, helping people quit smoking, and various other approaches to improving overall health.
This helps employees lose weight, eat a better diet, stop smoking, and more.
As a result, they’ll be at reduced risk of many chronic diseases linked with obesity and inactive lifestyles, such as heart disease and diabetes. They’ll also be at reduced risk of lung cancer due to smoking, and their improved immune systems will reduce instances of colds, flus, and other common illnesses.
That means lower healthcare costs, as well as reduced absences due to sick leave. But not only will it lower absenteeism caused by sick days, it’ll also lower “presentism” caused by employees coming in sick, meaning they’re still on the clock but not working productively.
Ensuring that employees feel healthy while on the job is one way a wellness program increases productivity—another way is that exercise releases endorphins in the brain, making it an effective tool to help employees manage work-related stress.
Most importantly though, a wellness program helps a workforce grow more connected, and helps employees feel like their employer is investing in them as individuals. And when workers feel that their boss cares enough about them to invest in them, you’ll notice that they put more in as well.
Sarah’s Approach to Corporate Wellness
To put together a comprehensive wellness program that works for your company though, you need a professional who’s educated in all the aspects that make up total health, as well as how to design and administer these sorts of fitness programs.
In other words, you can’t just hire any old personal fitness trainer from your local gym.
Sarah’s credentials are extensive, including years of training individuals, teaching physical education, running exercise physiology and cardiac stress-test labs at NIU, and more.
But most importantly, corporate wellness was Sarah’s focus when she was earning her Bachelor’s in Exercise Physiology and Kinesiology and her Master’s in Physical Education.
Because of that, Sarah is equipped to administer wellness programs for any sort of business and address the particular needs of their workers.
Attorneys and insurance agents may experience back pain from sitting all day. Not only will Sarah offer workout programs and walking programs to promote back health, she can also coordinate with a chiropractor to offer preventative care.
Warehouse workers and others who may often be moving boxes or doing various repetitive tasks may also experience back pain for different reasons, so Sarah can put her kinesiology background to use and teach employees about proper lifting mechanics to avoid injury.
On top of all this, Sarah can help the employer design stress management programs and walking programs which reward employees while bringing the company together.
So if you’re ready to help push for a workforce that’s more present, productive, and positive, give us a call today about setting up a wellness program at your workplace.