Employee Wellness SurveyEmployee Wellness Programs – Corporate Wellness Programs

Demographic and technological transformations are changing the nature of work in our society. As these changes occur the broad-based model of Employee Health Promotion Programs described above will evolve and continue to develop. If current trends continue, the workers of tomorrow will be older, more racially and ethically diverse, increasingly female, and will often be located off-site. In the later case, technological advances are making it possible for more and more experts to conduct their work from their homes. Thus the very character of the worksite will change and so must our efforts to deliver Employee Health Promotion Programs. As an example, in the future it is likely that a great deal of health education programming will be delivered through personalized interactive multimedia formats, conveniently supplied to any number of employees through telecommunication systems.

As technological innovations increase in the worksite, Employee Health Promotion Program experts will face new health related challenges. In the past, some have assumed that technology would make workers more efficient, thereby allowing employees to work less, while being more productive. In reality, increases in technological innovation have simply allowed more of us to take our work with us where ever we go and feel guilty for not being increasingly productive.

This trend may absorb increasingly greater amounts of leisure time that is normally devoted to recreation and relaxation. Subsequent increases in stress and fatigue will ensure the continued need for effective Employee Health Promotion Programs.

When considering the scope of Employee Health Promotion Programs described in this article, many will think of substantial investments made by large employers. The reality is that 60% of individuals working in the U.S. work for a organization of less than 100 employees (U. S. Bureau of Census, 1988). Due to economy of scale, it has been difficult and expensive for small organization owners to supply adequate health care insurance as well as prevention programming for workers.

Employee Health Promotion Program experts must understand this challenge and develop the means to overcome these obstacles. The evidence is clear that much more could be done to advance the health of our society through the worksite. As change agents, health educators must work to empower employers and employees through education of the benefits of Employee Health Promotion Programs.

Worksites do not exist in a vacuum. They are part and parcel of the community in which they are located. Successful corporate administrators are cognizant of the need for positive community relations and should do what is necessary to promote good will. What better way to bridge relationships than by utilizing existing community Employee Health Promotion Program services and initiatives whenever possible (e.g., voluntary, private and public health agencies) and providing health related services back to the community. Since the community is also the home of the worker, an effective mode of health promotion is through programming directed at the larger community. Sponsorship of community related health fairs is one example more are listed below.

• Encourages worker/employer involvement in the community
  Blood drives
  Sponsorship of fund raising for community schools and social services
  Community recycling initiatives
  Youth league sports sponsorship
  Job training initiatives
• Media and public relations initiatives advertising a healthy organization image
• organization newsletters and press releases on health issues to local media
• Environmentally sound use of waste disposal and community resources

At times Employee Health Promotion Programs have been instituted as public relations vehicles intended to enhance the corporate image with little concern for improvements in worker health. Companies who are truly committed to enhancing worker health and wellness, are employers who have worked to include Employee Health Promotion Programs into the organization’s mission statement. With this commitment, policies and procedures can be written to address short and long term goals of increased worker health, productivity, and morale. These policies and procedures are critical to the establishment of supportive organizational cultures conducive to worker health and wellness.

• Active worker involvement in Employee Health Promotion Program committees and organization decision making
• Availability of flextime work schedules
• No tobacco use policy
• Drug use policy and testing
• Motor vehicle seatbelts and the use of other protective/safety equipment
• Sexual harassment policy
• Family leave initiatives
• Consistent and frequent awards and recognition of worker work efforts