Why Employee Wellness

Employee health promotion programs are based on the theory that it costs less to educate workers about health risks than to pay for the cost of ill health and disease. The following benefits from in-house employee fitness and wellness programs have been demonstrated.

• Decreased absenteeism
  
• Decrease employee turnover
  
• Reduced health care claims
  
• Decreased musculoskeletal injuries
  
• Increased organizational effectiveness
  
• Return on investment
  

Absenteeism

• Over a ten-year period, The Canada Life Assurance Company showed that active employees decreased their absenteeism by 23.5%.
  
  
• Evaluation of a comprehensive program at General Mills showed a decrease in absenteeism by 19%.
  
  
• Dupont Corporation examined the effect of its comprehensive health promotion program on absence among workers. After 2 years, they demonstrated a 14% decline in disability days versus 5.8% in the control group.
  
  
• A nationwide survey of 8,301 employees showed an inverse relationship between absenteeism and fitness. Employees in the lowest fitness categories had 2.5 times the rate of extended sick leave compared to employees in the highest fitness categories.

Decreased Employee Turnover

• The Canada Life Assurance Company in Toronto found that employee turnover among program participants has been sustained at an 8% advantage compared to program dropouts.
  
  
• Tenneco found that those who did not participate in its corporate fitness program were 13% less likely to stay with the company.
  
  
• Gettman reported a turnover rate twice as high in sedentary employees as compared to physically active employees.

Reduced Health Care Claims

• Employee members of the GE Aircraft Engine's Fitness Centre in Cincinnati, had $540,000 less in medical costs compared to non-members.
  
  
• The Bank of America conducted a simplified health promotion program for $30 per person. Insurance claims were reduced an average of $164 per year in the intervention group, while costs increased $15 for the control group.
  
  
• Prudential Insurance reports that the company's major medical costs dropped from $574 to $312 for each participant in its wellness program.
  
  
• Wellness is optimizing health - therefore is used to describe all health promotion, fitness and other wellness programming
  

Reduced Musculoskeletal Injuries

• A study was conducted on 10,350 full-time regular employees who worked at Shell Oil to investigate musculoskeletal injuries. Findings suggest it is possible to reduce the impact of these injuries through implementation of an integrated injury prevention program which includes support for personal fitness programs.
  
  
• Of all Workers' Compensation Claims filed in the Province of Ontario in 1992, more than 50% were related to musculoskeletal injuries (sprains and strains). Of all the musculoskeletal injuries documented, 34% were due to back pain.

Increased Organizational Effectiveness

• At Canada Life, regular participants in the on-site fitness program scored significantly higher than the inactive groups in their attitudes towards co-workers, supervisors and work.
  
  
• Holzbach and others reported in the Journal of Occupational Medicine, a two-year study in which seven companies were studied; four with comprehensive health promotion programs and three without. The four companies with programs had significantly more positive changes related to organizational commitment, supervision, working conditions, pay and fringe benefits and job security.

Return on Investment

• Dupont reported that by the second year of their on-site fitness and wellness program a $2.05 return was realized for every dollar invested. In terms of reduction in absenteeism, an absolute dollar savings figure of $1,596,877 was calculated.
  
  
• A U.S. study of Johnson and Johnson's on-site wellness program shows a savings of $378 per employee due to decreased absenteeism and medical benefit costs.
  
  
• Canada Life's Fitness and Lifestyle Program calculated a return of $6.85 on each dollar invested. The main benefit items were reduced employee turnover, greater productivity and reduced medical insurance claims.
  

Return on Investment Ratios Estimated For
Corporate Fitness/Wellness/Health Programs

Adapted From Shephard, 1992, Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise