Workplace Wellness Success Stories

You’ve done everything, from health fairs to wall posters, and you’re getting good participation in your wellness programs. But you believe you could do better. It’s just that you’re short on new ideas to push participation up.

Why not draw inspiration from some of today’s most successful organizations? Even companies with big budgets don’t overlook the simple solutions that just about any organization can afford. For example:

Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, has suggested that cashiers spend some time each shift gathering shopping carts to inject more physical activity into their stationary jobs.

Union Pacific requires that at least 30% of vending machine snacks be healthy. The railroad company also sponsors employee cooking competitions.

Motorola offers a call-in service from which workers can get advice over the phone about managing chronic conditions such as diabetes and asthma.

Drug giant Johnson & Johnson touts preventive medicine by offering employees a complete health checkup that includes recommendations for lifestyle changes to lower risks.

The greatest tool of all? That’s probably encouragement — and reward. Union Pacific, for example, rewards employees who lower their risk of obesity by providing them with a gym membership, as well as offering them encouragement through weight-control tip pamphlets, and by continuing to track their progress.

Promoting wellness is a job that never ends. But it doesn’t have to be difficult — or expensive. Get creative. Move the copier so that employees have to walk a little farther to use it. Recruit local physicians or nurses to author or record “medical minutes” information for e-mailing or phoning. Remind employees on their birthdays to schedule an annual checkup so that they can celebrate many more years.

The sky’s the limit. Just a little imagination can keep your health care costs from soaring.