As we talked about last week, one way to keep employees around for longer is to offer benefits like Health & Wellness programs. Many people, especially your hard-working employees, prioritize their job over their health. Although this is commendable, it is counterproductive because they will most likely end up getting sick or burnt out, and then your company’s productivity will be lower.
It is your job to do all that you can to take care of your employees. One way to make sure that they are receiving all the benefit they can is to offer Health & Wellness Programs.
What are Health & Wellness Programs?
These programs are traditionally offered by the employer or through insurance companies as additions on to health insurance. According to Chron, “A wellness program is any program implemented by an employer to improve the health of its labor force.” They can include anything from health education, free preventative services, incentive programs, and much more.
What should you include in your Health & Wellness Program?
Below is a list of common activities and services offered in these programs. These programs can also be tailor made to suit your company best.
- Fitness Incentives
You can incentivize your employees to exercise by reimbursing them for their fitness purchases or gym memberships. Another popular service employers offer is a small bonus once a month for hitting a certain number of steps or reaching their fitness goal, which can be tracked on a phone or fitness tracker.
- Health Benefits
This section includes simple things like a stocked first-aid kit, free flu shots in the winter, a private room where people can take care to their health needs in the office. These extra health benefits do not cost you much and are much appreciated by your employees.
- Mental Health
Many employees are stressed which can lead to serious mental health problems, like anxiety and depression. To keep your employee’s mental health sound and your productivity high, there are many different measures you can take, based on your available resources.
There are simple tasks you can do, like setting a closing time for the office and not allowing anyone to work from home after work is over for the day. You can also require your employees to take their PTO after a certain point.
Some more intensive programs that can help with your employee’s mental health are yoga classes, free massages, referrals or help with talking to a licensed professional.
There is no reason any of your employees should be working too hard or overly stressed, and there are many preventative measures you can offer.
- Social Events and Team Building Activities
These can be physical events, like a company picnic or sports team, or they can be passive events, like a book club or anything else your employees enjoy. Not only will this help relieve stress in the work place, it will foster positive relationships and comradery in the office.
There are many more ways that you can offer your employees health and wellness plans. Also, if you do not want to create a plan yourself, you can offer plans already created by most insurance companies. Although you will have to put in some work and money to provide these programs, the benefits far outweigh the costs. Not only will you have a happier and healthier workforce, your employees will be more productive, giving you higher profits.