The challenging economic times we now face make it critically important to keep employees healthy, productive, and on the job.  In 2008, polls taken by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and CIGNA suggest that as many as a quarter to a third of Americans have avoided physician visits to save money.  It also found that ten percent or more are delaying refilling their prescriptions or taking smaller doses to try to make existing prescriptions last longer.  These types of behaviors can drive individuals further down the healthcare continuum where delayed care has high costs in economic, productivity, and quality of life terms.
 
Stress levels have significantly increased in all work environments and at home.  Surveys show that the economic downturn has forced many to have to work longer hours or even to take on second jobs.  These types of changes not only increase stress levels in families, but also can lead to increased safety issues at work.  Studies suggest that money and work are the two top sources of stress for almost seventy-five percent of the population. 
 
The Wharton Executive Education program has a program entitled “Leading a Resilient Organization: Achieving Results during Challenging Times”.  The premise of this week-long workshop is that in order to survive these volatile economic times, companies, teams, and individuals must develop the stress resilience skills to keep them performing at the top of their game.  Resiliency has been defined as the ability to persevere when things go awry.  It is the ability to recover or adjust easily to change, misfortune, and adversity.  The good news is that individuals can be trained to be more resilient, and organizations can initiate worksite wellness strategies that can significantly impact the resilience of their employees. 
 
Worksite Wellness Programs recognize that wellness is a lifelong journey and that it is an active process of making choices and commitments that can enhance the quality of life and maximize personal potential.  These programs are designed to provide employees the support they need to engage in behaviors that develop and maintain optimal health.  What is your company doing to support employee resilience? 
 
Worksite Wellness Ideas for Our Challenging Times
 
1. Develop a stress resiliency lunch and learn program that works better if it is done in teams.
2. Encourage employees to take micro breaks every 60–90 minutes, just enough time for a short walk.
3. Healthy living communications around your work environment (posters, etc.) remind employees that healthy living is all about small choices, not large changes.
4. Check out your dining service area and ensure that healthy choices are labeled to make it easier for employees move toward better nutrition.
5. Check out your vending machines and ensure that 40-60% are healthy choices.
6. Give a piece of fruit to everyone who wears their tennis shoes on Friday and takes a walk.
7. Talk to fitness centers in your work area and you be surprised how easy it might be to make a “corporate deal” for your employees.
8. Organize corporate teams for the walks, runs, and biking opportunities in your community–they offer employees a chance to have fun together.
9. Offer health screenings at work to ensure that your employees are focused on staying healthy.
10. Offer your employees opportunities to try complimentary and integrated medicine from massage, Tai Chi, yoga, Chi Gong and many more—at the worksite.
 
These are challenging times, but ensuring that your company’s most important asset, your employees, continue to perform their best at work is just a wellness program away!