Employees are among a company’s most important assets, and it makes sense that healthy people make for healthy companies. Yet, experts suggest that preventable illnesses account for approximately 70 percent of diseases and their associated costs in the United States.
“Investing in your employees’ health is one of the soundest investments employers can make,” says Dr. John Wallendjack, vice president of medical affairs for HealthAmerica. “By initiating a health promotion program, employers can take important steps toward preventing unnecessary sickness.”
Smart Business spoke with Wallendjack about why employers should be concerned about their employees’ wellness and what they can do about it.
Why should a company invest in workplace wellness?
More and more health experts are turning that question around and asking, ‘How can a company not invest in the health of its employees?’ The evidence is becoming quite convincing that keeping employees healthy and on the job is worth the effort. After all, if you can reduce the burden of illness among your work force by preventing major causes of sickness, more of your employees will remain healthy and productive, and you most likely will save money in the process.
What’s the real return on investment with worksite wellness programs?
That turns out to be one of the most incisive questions of all. In the last decade, large-scale studies on the effects of workplace health programs have shown a dependable bottom line. These studies show worksite wellness programs often result in a reduction of health care and insurance costs, as well as declines in absenteeism and injury rates, and improvements in performance and productivity.
In ‘Proof Positive: An Analysis of the Cost-Effectiveness of Wellness, Sixth Edition,’ Larry S. Chapman conducted a systematic review of the decrease in health care expenditures as a result of employee wellness programs. His review covered 60 of the most scientifically valid studies, with an average of 3.77 years of study.
Chapman found that worksite health promotion and wellness programs save $5.81 in costs for every dollar invested and can:
- Reduce sick leave by 25.3 percent
- Reduce health costs by 26.5 percent
- Reduce disability costs by 24.2 percent
- Reduce workers’ compensation costs by 40.7 percent
Research also suggests that the indirect costs of poor health, such as absenteeism, presenteeism and disability, may be two to three times higher than the direct medical costs and that the impact of poor health on indirect costs, particularly lost productivity, is borne by all employers, even those that do not provide heath benefits.
