The article selected for this synopsis is titled “More than two-thirds of US employers currently offer wellness programs, study says,” was published by Forbes in 2015, and authored by Vicky Valet. It reports on the findings of a study that states that more businesses were implementing workplace wellness programs in 2014 than in previous years. While only 58% of employers had such programs in 2008, the article reported a rise to 70% in 2014 and 8% more businesses with plans to start a program within 12 months (Valet, 2015). The author gives examples of the benefits included in the programs, including onsite nurses and physicians, fitness centers, nutritious foods, and nap rooms. Other wellness programs that saw increased adoption include smoking cessation initiatives, chronic illnesses preventive drives, and healthcare premium discounts. Nevertheless, onsite napping rooms and stress reduction initiatives experienced decreases between 2011 and 2014 (Valet, 2015). The article discusses the key reasons for implementing wellness programs in the workplace.
The business side of employee wellness programs considers the benefits gained by employers for implementing such programs. According to Valet (2015), most companies are pushed by the increasing costs associated with healthcare arising from the continued Affordable Care Act (ACA). Businesses are reducing costs by adopting a preventive approach that encourages employees to stay healthy and lower hospital visits. Fitness bands and activity trackers given by companies, and organized challenges and competitions have seen the most success in participation rates (Valet, 2015). The author predicts that surcharges for unhealthy habits and premium discounts may gain increased use in companies without budgets for full wellness programs.
Three journal articles related to workplace wellness programs were selected to support the synopsis. The article by Ott-Holland et al. investigated how increased participation impacted business outcomes. The authors established that high levels of participation contributed to improved workplace performance ratings, lower turnover, higher job satisfaction, and the intention to stay (Ott-Holland et al., 2019). This article focuses on the psychological outcomes of wellness programs that are relevant to employers instead of financial health benefits only. When employees develop positive work attitudes and behaviors, they improve their productivity and ultimately increase the profitability of the company. The said benefits are only achieved with high participation rates influenced by the value employees put on the programs. Such value is created by the perception that the wellness programs are well supported by the organization.
In another article, researchers enrolled employees in a wellness program to measure the outcomes and business returns businesses can expect. Jones et al. (2019) also discuss the ‘business’ side of wellness programs, specifically decreases in medical spending, improvement of wellbeing, and increased productivity. The authors found that participating in wellness programs significantly reduced medical expenditures among participants, hence, saving their employers money. However, the gains made during the first year decreased in the second year of program enrolment (Jones et al., 2019). The decline in participation rates and outcomes of programs was also observed by Ott-Holland et al. (2019) after the first year. This decreasing participation rate requires intervention to ensure that businesses continuously gain returns from investing in wellness programs.
Achieving business returns from workplace wellness programs may require companies to do more than just roll out a program. Cohen and Liu (2019) established that integrating an onsite clinic with a wellness program increased the returns for the company. Such integration increases the effectiveness of a wellness initiative through coordinated and comprehensive health interventions. Onsite clinic and program integration enables a company to provide expert leadership for every initiative, set up home visits, offer healthy food options verified by a practitioner, and have a closer follow-up on high-risk employees (Cohen & Liu, 2019). Companies that seek business side outcomes must invest more resources into their wellness programs.
Overall, workplace wellness programs have positive returns but need proper implementation. The analyzed articles reveal that companies record maximum benefits only in the first year and returns begin to reduce in the next year of implementation. Such declines in positive outcomes are related to withdrawal or reduction of incentives offered in the first year to encourage participation. In my perspective, businesses must find sustainable methods to encourage high participation rates. For example, the integration of onsite clinics with other wellness programs is a sustainable method of encouraging continued participation because the medical experts have ways of ensuring commitment to the programs.
Other methods to encourage accepting feedback from employees include educating the workers, outreach activities, and creating awareness. While these strategies are effective in the beginning, they may not be sustainable. Nevertheless, wellness programs have shown positive results in reducing business medical expenditures, improving general employees’ wellbeing, and increasing performance and productivity. These reasons should encourage companies to invest more resources into increasing participation rates every year. One of the most effective strategies to onboard workers into a wellness program is to create perceived organizational support for the program. Such a perception is the force behind the effectiveness of company-provided activity trackers and fitness bands.
References
Cohen, C., & Liu, H. H. (2019). Potential synergies between workplace wellness programs and on-site clinics. Population Health Management, 22(6), 470-472.
Jones, D., Molitor, D., & Reif, J. (2019). What do workplace wellness programs do? Evidence from the Illinois Workplace Wellness Study. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 134(4), 1747-1791.
Ott-Holland, C. J., Shepherd, W. J., & Ryan, A. M. (2019). Examining wellness programs over time: Predicting participation and workplace outcomes. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 24(1), 163.
Valet, V. (2015). More than two-thirds of US employers currently offer wellness programs, study says. Forbes. Web.