Week 3 Discussion

Employee Health, Wellness Programs, and Cost Containment

Employee health is just one of the many reasons the absenteeism rate continues to rise in organizations and worldwide. When employees have poor health, they are not able to perform at their fullest potential. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2018), “About 4.2 million workers in January 2018 missed work because they had an illness, injury, or medical problem or appointment” (para. 1). Employers are constantly reviewing the cost of healthcare premiums while not taking a closer examination of the actual �nancial and productivity loss that occurs when employees are not performing their assigned jobs. All absences should be tracked (planned and unplanned). The human resources (HR) professional will typically have data on vacations, on-the-job injuries, the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) related absences and disabilities since these absences are closely tied to the employees’ pay and are easy to identify. Today, many health insurance companies provide employees or employers with an array of wellness program options. Some employers may even offer wellness education workshops and virtual care. To truly understand the costs associated with health- related absences, the employer can sift through reports on obesity, high blood pressure, depression, etc. The HR professional can also review articles published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “It is advisable to commit to health promotion with a corresponding commitment to data collection. Without data, evaluation is impossible” (Cascio & Boudreau, 2011, p. 123).

To evaluate the effectiveness of a wellness program, you may use one of the following methods: 

Cost-effective analysis

Cost-bene�t and return-on-investment analysis

The employer must take the initiative, value the employees, focus on a long-lasting employee or employer relationships, and design wellness programs that �t within the company culture. The ultimate objective is to have healthier employees, reduce productivity loss, and lower the absenteeism rate and health insurance premiums.

Workplace Wellness Programs

On-site �tness center or health

club membership Employee assistance program

Healthy snacks Yoga

Chair massage Meditation breaks

Reference:

Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2018, March 29). TED: The Economics Daily Image. Retrieved from http s://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2018/4-point-2-million-workers-have-illness-related-work-absences-in-j anuary-2018.htm

Wellness challenges Smoking cessation programs

Transit options

Additional Materials

From your course textbook, Process Metrics and Measurement Complete Self-Assessment Guide, review the following chapters:

Criterion #2: De�ne

Criterion #3: Measure

From the South University Online Library, review the following article:

Meet the Wellness Programs That Save Companies Money (https://www.thecampuscommon.com/library/ezproxy/ticketdemocs.asp? sch=suo&turl=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx? direct=true&db=bth&AN=118686064&site=eds-live)

From the Internet, review the following:

Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2018, March 29).TED: The Economics Daily Image. Retrieved from https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2018/4-point-2-million-workers-have-illness-related-work-abs ences-in-january-2018.htm

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