Six Easy-to-Implement Workplace Wellness Programs
While the idea of promoting “wellness” in the workplace has become ubiquitous, what wellness actually means, how to incorporate it into the work day, and what kinds of wellness programs employees will actually engage in, remains elusive. But companies have an incentive to find a wellness program that works — wellness programs aren’t just a nice perk, they’re good for the bottom line.
A 2012 study by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans found that for every $1 spent on fitness efforts, employers could expect $1 to $3 decreases in total healthcare costs.
Wellness programs can run the gamut from group Fitbit challenges to on-site gyms. However, building a large-scale program may seem daunting due to budget or time available for your team. The good news is that many companies have implemented simple, easy wellness ideas that require little space or equipment, and can integrate into existing company culture.
Here are six programs and ideas you can try to kick your workplace wellness into gear.
1. Zappos’ “Wellness Adventures”
Las Vegas-based online shoe retailer Zappos provides fitness activities for all levels of employee athletes. In addition to company-organized three-on-three basketball games and “Recess Tuesday” gym sports, Wellness Coordinator Kelly Maher brings the Zappos team on fitness field trips. For the company’s “Wellness Adventures,” Maher has taken groups to trampoline parks, laser tag venues, and local parks for sports like soccer. Beyond exercise, the outings also serve as icebreakers and team-building excursions. Maher makes sure to assemble each adventure’s roster across multiple departments.
2. Google’s Garden
Google’s campus in Mountain View, California has long been a Shangri-La for tech employees. Engineered for comfort and productivity, the search engine’s headquarters has nap pods, treadmill desks, and unlimited free food. That last perk caused a hitch, however, when employees began gaining weight. In addition to color-coding food choices by healthiness, Google implemented company gardens, which can be created by any office with a patch of dirt. Not only do the gardens provide fresh, healthy food for Google’s snack bars, but employees can work in the garden, an activity proven to promote mental clarity and a feeling of reward. The idea has since spread from Silicon Valley to the company’s London office.
3. Atlassian’s Workout Breaks
At both its Austin and San Francisco outposts, global software company Atlassian breaks up long days spent in front of screens with exercise sessions. Senior Systems Analyst Adrian Mason, who leads twice-weekly workouts at the Austin office, has created a simple regimen that can be done without any equipment that’s accessible to fitness newbies. Mason’s office workout entails 10 pushups, a 30-second plank, mountain-climbing motions for 20 seconds, another 30-second plank, 10 more pushups, and then 30 seconds of exercises of the participants’ choice. “The fun thing about the workouts is the viral effect they have,” Mason told an interviewer for the company blog. “When one person sees another coworker doing it, they jump in, too.”
4. Bandwidth’s 90-Minute Lunches
Some companies promote health by simply ensuring the workday doesn’t interfere with exercise routines. Bandwidth, a North Carolina-based internet and phone service provider, schedules 90-minute lunch breaks for their employees so they have a chance to get to the gym or yoga studio. The company also provides a free gym membership and sponsors sports leagues to give employees somewhere to workout and something to train for during their midday break. CEO David Morken has been said to lead by example, blocking off his schedule from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
5. Vynamic’s Email Outage
In another simple alteration of corporate culture, Vynamic, a Philadelphia healthcare consulting firm, implemented a company policy to discourage emailing after hours. “Stress was showing up as a challenge for our team — an area that we weren’t really making improvements on,” CEO Dan Calista told Fast Company. “Through some conversations about the abundance of email and the always-being-on nature of our jobs, we realized that this could be a great opportunity to create a structured way to disconnect on a regular basis.” Employees are banned from sending work emails from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. on weekdays and anytime on weekends. This straightforward change helps mitigate the serious health impacts of work stress.
6. Scripps Health’s Vending Machines
When renewing snack vendor contracts, employers have an opportunity to make health a priority. Scripps Health, which manages four hospitals and 19 outpatient facilities in the San Diego area, added snack machines stocked by FitZee Foods to its buildings. The local health-minded food company offers snacks that make up a nutritious meal — perfect for doctors, nurses, and other health professionals who work long, unpredictable shifts and can’t always leave to get lunch.
While larger companies can install treadmills and order team lunch, there are also measures early stage startups and smaller businesses can take to make employee health a priority. Companies should experiment to see what works within their company culture. Sometimes, it’s as simple as providing a time or space to do some afternoon crunches.
About the author: Nick Keppler is a Pittsburgh-based freelance writer whose work has appeared in AlterNet, The Village Voice, Mental Floss, Men’s Health, Vice and Slate.
