CORPORATE AUSTRALIA HAS DISCOVERED WORK-SITE WELLNESS
As businesses struggle to reverse rising healthcare costs, wellness programs are becoming essential to a company’s economic livelihood. Companies are finding that any investment in wellness is worth it’s weight in gold.
REDUCED ABSENTEEISM AND DISABILITY TIME
- For every dollar spent on a Corporate Wellness Program, the returns have been cost savings of between $2.30 and $10.10 in the areas of decreased absenteeism, fewer sick days, reduced Work cover claims and improvements to employee performance and productivity.
- The average level of employee absenteeism across all sectors is 8.62 days per employee per annum (2008)
- The average cost of absence was $354 per employee per day in 2008, costing the economy $21 BILLION. In 2010 it is $27 BILLION!
- Researchers believe that exercise helps boost the immune system and increases strength, thus resulting in fewer incidences of absenteeism due to sickness or injury.
- The leading cause of increased loss of productivity to sick time is stress, which is one of three conditions that are amenable to early intervention, the others being lower back pain and muscular-skeletal injury.
- A study by Medibank Private in 2005 found that unhealthy employees take 9 times more sick leave than healthy employees.
- In 2009, Australian statistics showed that companies effectively running corporate wellness programs had 2.5 times improved employee performance, 8 times higher employee engagement, and 3.5 times higher creativity and innovation on the job.
IMPROVED PRODUCTIVITY AND MORALE
A healthy lifestyle impacts every part of an employees daily work environment. Corporate Wellness Programs translate into fewer injuries, less human error, and a more harmonious working environment, with employees feeling that the organization cares about them, they will produce more effort in the workplace. Furthermore, it has been estimated that presenteeism costs companies up to 4 times more than absenteeism through loss of productivity on the job.
LOWER TURNOVER
In 2009, Australian statistics revealed that companies failing to manage health and wellness were 4 times more likely to lose talent within any 12 month period. Healthy staff tend to be happier employees, who tend to be loyal, productive, and long-term employees. Therefore, the company reduces costs of hiring and training new personnel. The basis for creating a healthy workforce, of course, is a well- conceived and well promoted corporate wellness program.
REDUCED COSTS AND MEDICAL CLAIMS
The most obvious benefit of a corporate wellness program is that it allows companies to reduce their overall healthcare costs, in part by reducing the number of medical claims processed each year. Both the business community and the general population need exercise. Repeated studies has confirmed that regular exercise has a preventive effect against a wide variety of illness and disease.
- The Australian Institute of Health & Welfare reports that over 75% of all illness can be attributed to lifestyle-related causes, and that 65% of Australia’s population is inactive.
- The more your business helps associate’s avoid illness and disease, the more you can save on healthcare costs each year.
- Setting up wellness plans is relatively inexpensive. According to an HR focus Wellness Survey, wellness programs only cost 1%-3% of total healthcare costs to the company.
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