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Leigh Stringer

The Healthy Workplace

How to Improve the Well-Being of Your Employees – and Boost Your Company's Bottom Line

AMACOM, 2016

15 min read

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Corporate wellness programs improve employee health and boost your bottom line.

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Many top companies invest heavily in employee-wellness programs that help workers stay healthy and can reduce corporate health-insurance costs. Most firms with wellness programs discover that having healthier employees translates directly to having a healthier bottom line. Workplace sustainability expert Leigh Stringer explains why corporate wellness programs are good for companies and their employees and tells executives how to plan, organize and implement a wellness program. Some managers may have second thoughts about a few of these suggestions; for instance, letting workers bring their pets to the office might work better for small firms than big corporations. Nonetheless, getAbstract recommends this authoritative guide to leaders studying the pros and cons of creating programs that foster a healthier workplace.

Summary

A Healthy Workplace

“Employees are the engine that keeps companies running.” That’s exactly why you want to help the people in your workforce get healthy and stay healthy. If they feel well and work productively, your business will flourish.

Today, many American employees are unhealthy or overweight; many still smoke. More than one in three adults in the United States is obese. The sedentary behavior of most office workers can lead to diabetes, heart disease and stroke. Stress, which adds $300 billion annually to US business costs, is a chronic illness that causes increased absenteeism, as well as the problem of “presenteeism” – when sick employees come to work, but they aren’t productive.

American employers spent $578.6 billion on group health care costs in 2012, up 72% from 2000. Considering the enormity of today’s health crisis, with its negative effects on productivity and its heavy costs for businesses, you might think most companies would make an effort to help workers improve their health. Unfortunately, the opposite is true. For most employees, the time they spend at work is “the least healthy part of the day.”

However, your job doesn...

About the Author

Leigh Stringer is a senior workplace expert for EYP Architecture & Engineering. She is a workplace sustainability consultant to higher education, government, corporate, institutional and private-sector clients.

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