Workplaces can see tangible pay-offs and adjustments in their bottomline just by investing in a corporate
wellness programme.
IT MIGHT be a hard sell but corporate wellness experts agree that companies that invest in their employees' health and well-being actually see the pay-off in the bottomline.
For instance, Veronica Marsden, a Canadian corporate fitness and health consultant, who visited the island recently, said that data in Canada indicate that for every (Canadian) dollar invested in a corporate wellness programme the returns can run up to $3.43.
"The literature is there to support the sustainability of these programmes, and there is also available the cost/benefit analyses of these programmes," she said.
The healthy workplace model is more than just the addition of a gym at the workplace, it's about incorporating health, fitness and well-being into the corporate philosophy. So, Mrs. Marsden said that the programme should be strategically driven from the top. The companies' key decision makers should embrace, support and nurture these programme for them to be sustainable.
Mrs. Marsden who was invited here by the Health Ministry to promote its healthy lifestyle programme started in March, also said that these programmes should be fully integrated into the business objectives of the organisation.
"I think that this is one of the key reasons why the human resource professionals are the ones that are being targeted at the workplace... because when you take a look at workplace wellness programmes they really fall under the umbrella of human resources, and when we take into consideration the outcomes of these programmes, they are going to relate specifically to issues that human resources departments face such as the escalating costs of benefits (drug costs), employees assistance programmes, disability costs," Mrs. Marsden said.
WELLNESS PROGRAMME
The workplace wellness programme is tied into the human resource strategy of the organisation. The term wellness, Mrs. Marsden said, incorporates the physical, mental and social well-being of the employees that is, the whole individual. This perspective moves beyond exercise programmes to the integration of systems that reduce workplace stress, nutrition education and meals served at workplace cafeterias, weight management, making offices no-smoking zones and injury prevention programmes.
All the research point to tangible and intangible benefits when corporate wellness programmes are sustained. The tangible benefits include reduced health care costs, fewer accidents and injuries (with reduced long-term disability), there is also direct savings for recruitment and retention, and Mrs. Marsden said that many organisations in Canada, particularly high-tech organisations, are having a lot of difficulty maintaining their competitiveness when it comes to attracting and retaining top talent but, a good corporate wellness programme will give them the edge.
Intangible benefits include greater sense of well-being among employees and improved staff morale.
