If you run a business or are part of a successful company, you should consider incorporating or suggesting employee wellness programs. Here are some of the top reasons why corporate wellness programs are essential in businesses today.
Reduces healthcare costs
If the company offers holistic wellness programs that help improve employee health and motivation, the cost of healthcare will gradually decrease. In many cases, the savings you can make by participating in the program will cover the total cost of such programs.
Less stress in the workplace
One of the most important everyday skills trained in corporate wellness programs is the management of stress. Permanent stress can damage physical and mental health. Activities that can help reduce stress in the workplace include walking/running meetings and yoga or mindfulness meditation. It doesn’t always have to be long and intense, because in fact even (regular) moderate 30-minute activities during the working day are enough to relieve some of the stress.
Promotes healthier habits
Through wellness programs, company employees can learn new healthy habits to make their daily lives healthier. Courses with fitness and wellness professionals can help reduce or eliminate unhealthy habits such as smoking and drinking alcohol. The group dynamics among employees should also not be underestimated. If employees with the same intentions participate in the program, group members can help and support each other to live healthier lives. This social component increases the likelihood that the company fitness program will have a lasting positive impact on participants.
Improves productivity
The labour productivity of companies can be reduced, among other things, by unproductive employees who are physically on site but do not work efficiently due to health restrictions. This kind of poor productivity is called “presenteeism”. Experts estimate that the costs companies have to bear due to presenteeism are about two to three times higher than direct health expenditure. Health restrictions that negatively affect labour productivity may include smoking, obesity or poor diet. A well-planned wellness program helps employees to pay more attention to their physical and mental health and sustainably increases work productivity.
Enthusiasm from employees
An attractive wellness program can have a strong impact on employee retention and satisfaction. If a company promotes health through fitness courses, nutritional advice, healthy snacks or similar offers, social interaction, productivity and satisfaction as well as the employees’ sense of belonging are increased. Those who are committed to a healthy lifestyle are in line with the trend and will have less trouble retaining employees in the long term. The company can set an example in this respect and enable employees to live healthy lives in everyday life.
Conclusion
There are many reasons why companies should offer their own wellness programs or consider implementing them in the future. It doesn’t cost much to provide employees with a healthy working day. The positive effects of wellness programs for companies outweigh effort and costs and are reflected, among other things, in higher work productivity and employee retention.
