How To Have A Healthy Workforce

With all the costs that are plaguing employers there are several things that need to be done in order to improve these costs. One of the highest costs out there right now is healthcare costs. The cost of healthcare is costing employers billions of dollars a year. Add on the cost of lost production and sick leave and you have even more money piling up. What can employers do to work on these costs and find a way to improve their employee's health? One of the most popular ways to reduce these costs is by implementing a quality workplace wellness program. The wellness programs are designed to provide you with reduced costs by improving the health of your employees.

In order to create an effective wellness program for your company you need to take a look at your staff and determine what your needs are. One way to find out what you need to work on (obesity, smoking cessation, etc.) you need to give your insurance company a call and ask them to do a Health Risk Appraisal. This will give you an overview of the state of your employee's health. As you read over it you can determine which type of programs you would like to focus on and how you can improve your employee's health.

The planning phase of a good wellness program is important to it's success. Some companies will opt for a template that they use to create the program where others will create their own. Asking your employees for their input is a great way to find out what type of classes or other things you need to add to the wellness program in order for it to become a success. Some of your employees may not want to be told to exercise but want to listen to other things like how to cook healthier meals and lose weight and other things like this. Some companies will offer classes during business hours like a yoga course to help decrease stress and to focus on improving employee health at the same time.

Walking programs are another great option to bring to a wellness program. The walking programs are great as they help you to encourage your employees to exercise but you can also find that it is a fun way to have short meetings with your employees as you go outside for a nice walk and enjoy some sunlight.

Have several options with your programs to get your employees to work out and get involved. Giving them options will encourage them to get involved in the wellness program. It will also give you a chance to try out different things as well so you aren't getting bored with the same old exercise routine in the office.

Once you create the program and introduce it, you need to follow up with it and you need to continue encouraging your employees. If you get complacent with the program then you won't have people participating in it. The first week or two may be met with a lot of excitement but it can dwindle if you are not staying on top of it and keeping your employees excited about the programs.

Talk to your insurance company to find out if they can provide you with free health screenings along with things like vaccinations. This is a great way to help improve the health of your employees as they are able to get assessments from their healthcare provider about their health and what they can do to improve their condition and prevent illnesses and other things.Vaccinations like flu shots are also wonderful things to have as they will also help to prevent illnesses from happening.