Employee Wellness

Want some wellness program ideas and wellness policy ideas to get you started? Or maybe you want to jump begin or improve upon your current wellness program?

The list below provides “best practices’ that can help meet any wellness program budget! the Wellness Program ideas are divided into topic areas.

General Wellness Progam Ideas

• Policy – Conduct an Employee Needs and Interest Survey

• Policy – Create a management/employee Wellness Committee

• Policy – Pick health plans that cover costs for weight management and smoking cessation

• Policy – Waive co-payment or reimburse for preventive healthcare visits

• Program – Display  brochures on a selection of wellness topics for workers to take

• Program – Establish a wellness resource center or library with videos, books, magazines, DVD’s on a selection of topics of interest to employees

• Program – Identify workers who are mentors or champions for healthful activities and ask them to present or to list as a contact for other employees

• Program – Plan and promote periodic or regular educational sessions.

• Program – Plan monthly educational sessions on the national health observance topic

• Program – Post a Wellness Bulletin Board and update it monthly

• Program – Promote messages from national health observances during the month

• Program – Publish and/or post healthful tips in newsletters, paycheck stuffers, bulletin boards, etc.

• Program – Sponsor a benefits fair

• Program – Sponsor corporation fitness and healthy eating challenges

• Program – Sponsor company health fairs or other on-site events

Nutrition Programs

• Policy – Offer free, healthy snacks for employees (fruit, nuts, popcorn)

• Policy – Provide healthy meal options in cafeterias and at business events

• Policy – Provide information to staff members about the nutritional content of food served in the cafeteria

• Policy – Start a fresh fruit “snack basket” in the breakroom or cafeteria

• Policy – Stock vending machines with healthier options

• Policy – Subsidize healthful foods in the cafeteria or vending machines (10? apples may  be more appealing than $1.00 candy bars)

• Program – Coordinate a weekly or monthly healthy lunch club

• Program – Have  pamphlets available on a variety of healthful eating topics

• Program – Include nutrition articles in company newsletters

• Program – Schedule a healthy food tasting contest Free

• Program – Schedule educational sessions at lunch-time on a selection of nutrition topics of interest

• Program – Sponsor an worker healthy food cookbook. Either sell the cookbook and use profits for programs, or purchase a cookbook for all employees

Weight Loss Programs / Weight Management Programs

• Policy – Consider flexible work schedules so that workers can participate in weight-loss programs

• Policy – Subsidize registration costs for weight-management programs

• Program – Form a support group to help employees who are attempting to lose weight

• Program – Locate registered dieticians near your worksite as a resource for staff members who want information on healthful consuming, meal planning or weight control

• Program – Offer individual counseling for employees trying to lose weight

• Program – Offer on-site fitness and weight-management programs through your local hospital, Weight Watchers, TOPS or local, registered dietician

• Program – Schedule an educational session on diet myths and healthy eating

Exercise Programs

• Policy – Allow flexible work schedules to encourage exercise

• Policy – Develop a fitness space with aerobic equipment, and weights

• Policy – Develop accessible walking paths, trails, and/or bicycle routes

• Policy – Make sure to encourage employees to walk more by parking farther away from the entrance

• Policy – Establish a fitness center with aerobic equipment, weights, group fitness classes, fitness professionals

• Policy – Hold walking meetings

• Policy – Make the stairwells more appealing (carpet, fresh paint, artwork, posters)

• Policy – Offer decreased fitness club membership fees to all staff members

• Policy – Provide facilities for employees to secure bicycles

• Policy – Schedule 5 – 10 minute stretch breaks during the day

• Policy – Subsidize health club membership for staff members who participate a minimal number of days per week (ex., 3 days per week)

• Policy – Support lunchtime walking/running clubs or corporation sports team

• Program – Make certain to encourage stairwell use and incentives

• Program – Install a basketball hoop outside

• Program – Promote and support community walks or fitness events

• Program – Promote walking during breaks and other off-time periods

• Program – Provide periodic fitness incentive programs to encourage exercise

• Program – Schedule educational sessions on fitness activities

Use of tobacco Cessation Programs / Tobacco Cessation Programs

• Policy – Develop a tobacco-free grounds

• Policy – Develop a smoke-free workplace

• Policy – Make sure to encourage the use of 1-800-QUIT-NOW, North Carolina’s free Tobacco Use Quitline. Or check www.QuitlineNC.com

• Policy – Reimburse for tobacco replacement products

• Policy – Subsidize the cost of smoking cessation workshops

• Program – Give  handouts and information on health effects from use of tobacco and smoking cessation

• Program – Schedule awareness sessions to motivate workers to attempt to quit tobacco use

• Program – Schedule on-site tobacco use cessation workshops

Employee Medical Screening

• Policy – Discount health insurance premiums or reduce co-payments for workers who participate in screenings and who participate in managing their risk factors

• Policy – Install blood pressure (BP) monitoring equipment

• Program – Offer flu shots for staff members and family members

• Program – Offer Health Risk (Assessment|Appraisal}s to all workers, including counseling and follow-up

• Program – Offer periodic blood pressure (BP) screenings and follow-up

• Program – Offer periodic screenings for cholesterol, blood sugar, body composition, etc.

Stress Management Programs / Be certain to work Life Balance Programs

• Program – Allow flexible schedules for family/work life balance

• Program – Offer and promote an staff member assistance program

• Program – Give information on substance abuse prevention

• Program – Provide  handouts and information on stress management and mental health

• Program – Give  brochures and information on work life balance, like financial planning, childcare, parenting, elder care, etc.

• Program – Provide supervisor and manager training on communication, relationship building, organizational stressors, etc.

• Program – Review company policies and work schedules to identify organizational stressors

• Program – Review the worker assistance program to ensure it’s meeting the needs of the employees and company

• Program – Schedule educational sessions on stress management and work life balance

• Program – Schedule seminars on relaxation, stress management, and work life balance topics