The "Bennett Fits" of a wellness program at the workplace
The high pressure Silicon Valley work environment can make work-life balance very difficult. Employees work long hours, make time to spend with their families, and often run out of time to take care of themselves. Sitting in traffic for hours on your way home from work, only to find that your local gym is overcrowded and your workout will be constantly interrupted is very discouraging. Implementing a workplace wellness program provides a solution to these challenges.
In addition, two thirds of American adults are overweight or obese, while about half of American adults suffer from chronic disease. Chronic diseases include heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, strokes, cancer, and arthritis. Although these are the most common and costly conditions, they are also the most preventable. People who suffer from obesity are at a higher risk of developing chronic health issues. Obesity and chronic disease can be prevented and managed through healthy lifestyle modifications. This is where Bennett Fit can help.
Benefits of Workplace Wellness for employers:
Implementation of an employee wellness program results in a positive return on investment.
Employers can reduce costs by improving the health of employees. Healthier employees will result in fewer health claims, reduce the volume of workers’ compensation claims, and decrease costs associated with employee absenteeism and low productivity.
According to recent studies:
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50% of corporate profits are put towards healthcare costs for many companies
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At least 25% of these healthcare costs are associated with preventable health risks including poor diet and lack of exercise
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Employers lose $1,685 per employee each year due to employees missing work
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Each year, employees who are overweight, obese, or suffer from chronic health conditions miss 450 million more days of work than healthy employees.
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Reducing weight, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol levels by 1% has been shown to save employers around $100 in medical costs per person each year.
Implementing a health and wellness program can:
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Reduce sick days by 28%
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Reduce health care costs by 26%
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Reduce workers compensation and disability by 30%
Implementing a wellness program can attract, engage, and retain employees.
Health and wellness initiatives are becoming more common in the workplace. Recent surveys determined that
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94% of CEOs believe that workplace wellness is “essential to attracting top talent”
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80% of CEOs agree that wellness programs reduce stress in the workplace.
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92% of companies that enacted wellness programs considered their programs successful.
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47% of CEOs see wellness programs as a way to provide a sense of inclusion and community atmosphere at work. This has been regarded as a priority for the incoming millennial workforce.
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Employees who had wellness programs available at the workplace reported higher job satisfaction and happiness at work.
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28% of workers said that workplace wellness programs increased their loyalty towards their employer.
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35% of workers said that they were willing to make a lifestyle change if it meant they could lower health insurance premiums.
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