Exercise at work benefits worker, bottom line

Companies are catching on to the benefits of having healthy employees and encouraging them to take time during the work day to get or stay fit.
In fact, employers who best control costs and have good productivity also integrate a broad array of health-management programs into the workday, according to a recent survey by the consulting firm Watson Wyatt and the National Business Group on Health, a nonprofit association of 285 large employers.
Richmond-based Vibco Inc. believes it. All employees start their mornings with total body stretches, which gets them off on the right foot for the workday, said Linda Kleineberg, marketing manager for Vibco.
The daily group stretch is one part of Vibco’s extensive wellness program, which the company started about four years ago.
“The morning stretches prepare your body and mind [for] the workday ahead,” said Alissa Gumprecht, who is in charge of Vibco’s marketing and strategic partnerships. “It has definitely helped us prevent soft tissue injuries in employees doing lifting and on their feet all day. Even people at their desks, it helps prevent issues like carpal tunnel [syndrome].”
The company, which manufactures vibration equipment and vibrators for industrial and construction applications, also initiated a “Commit to Be Fit” program about a year ago, starting with a weight-loss program. Vibco contracted a fitness instructor to help people stay on their nutrition and fitness plan.
“We would do walking groups at lunch time, or if you have a working lunch, at break times we go out and get some quick exercise and some air,” Gumprecht said. “Having the group support helped me stick with it.”
Employees engaged in the Commit to be Fit program at Vibco also receive a nutritional plan that teaches them about how the body responds to food, and ways to prevent diseases related to weight, like type II diabetes, Kleineberg said.
As for the bottom line, Vibco’s wellness program adds to productivity and fosters a spirit of teamwork, Kleineberg said. Ideally, “fewer employees are injured on the job and have to be out on workers’ compensation. The morning stretches and workouts help your mind focus, so you are in the right place mentally and physically during the workday.”
The survey from Watson Wyatt and the National Business Group on Health saw the same thing; companies with effective health and productivity programs demonstrate superior performance. They achieve 20 percent more revenue per employee, have 16 percent higher market value and deliver 57 percent higher shareholder returns. Additionally, companies with highly effective health and productivity programs have cost increases that are five times lower for sick leave; four and one-half times lower for long-term disability; four times lower for short-term disability and three-and-one-half times lower for general health coverage.
The R.I. Dept of Labor and Training (DLT) in Cranston, which won a gold medal in March 2007 from the Worksite Wellness Council of Rhode Island for its wellness program, promotes walking groups during lunch and break times. The DLT also hosts smoking-cessation programs, yoga classes, Weight Watchers classes and a farmers’ market outside the building to promote healthy eating, said Laura Hart, communications manager at the DLT.
“We implement wellness programs to benefit employees, but the side effect of that is there is less sick time, and the programs foster a sense of community,” Hart said.
The Rhode Island Blood Center (RIBC) in Providence also hosts health and disease prevention programs for its 380 employees through insurer Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island, said Kristel Henry, a human resources director at the RIBC.
The company holds annual health fairs during which employees can get their confidential health assessments. Group results, without the names of workers attached, are studied for risk factors affecting the general employee population. Results are used to develop specific wellness programs, like Walk for Fitness – a six-week program in which employees get an odometer to log their walking progress. The RIBC also holds nutrition classes during lunch and other programs to promote healthy living, Henry said.
The wellness programs are offered during the work day, Henry said. The RIBC programs will, hopefully, prevent illness and disease and keep health insurance costs from increasing, she said. •

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