Benefits administration: Keep your staff in motion

Hilary Gardner

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By Hilary Gardner

There is no denying that a sedentary lifestyle is unhealthy and can lead to life-threatening health problems.

Let’s start at the beginning: Thousands of years ago, humans had to be on their feet constantly, searching for food, water and shelter. They were active and pretty fit overall. However, we all know that times have changed. With rapid changes in technology, and the ubiquity of desktop computers, many people sit for eight hours every day, staring at their computer screens (irony: I’m doing that right now!). The situation is further complicated when taking short breaks is frowned upon by management who expect you to be at your desk, nose to the grindstone.

So what do we do to combat this epidemic of sluggishness and lack of movement? How can we change the mindset of employers to embrace the idea that employees in motion are better off in a number of ways than just sitting all day? Introduce a wellness program at your organization and sell its benefits to your management team.

Wellness doesn’t have to be a human resources initiative. At DAVIS, we have empowered our staff to take the lead on different programs within our wellness initiative.

Everyone at DAVIS recognizes the importance of regular exercise, and we have gamified it to appeal to the competitive staff at our offices. It all started a few years back when one of our recruiters decided to start a 30-day planking challenge. Every day at 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., she motivated her team including her managers to plank. It started off as a 20-second plank, and eventually we worked our way up to three minutes (which doesn’t sound like much, but believe me, it’s tough!). To this day, planking still occurs at random times around the office.

With the advent of wearable fitness trackers, we recently started a weekly exercise challenge. Every Monday, a group of employees, including me, engages in a steps competition. The daily goal is 10,000 steps, and the competition lasts from Monday to Friday. Right now, the only motivator we have to win is sheer bragging rights, but I assure you that no one likes to end up in last place. In the near future, I’d like to introduce a reward component that is simple and cost-effective, and the weekly winner will receive a small gift card, a voucher to come in late or leave early one day, or get their car washed by the person in last place.

Another new initiative we have started came from one of our recruiters. She brought in a dance workout DVD and coordinated an all-female Tuesday afternoon exercise group, starting at 5:30 p.m. when our day is done. We have a large training room with an overhead projector, and we moved the tables and chairs around to create a big open space. Our first class was just last week and had four participants. This week we doubled that number and eight women participated (and we even did an eight-minute abdominal workout as well!) The DVD workout is easy enough for a beginner to join, but difficult enough that even the fittest person in the room worked up a good sweat. It’s only 30 minutes, so it’s not a huge time commitment, and it’s a great way to get your heart pumping. The best part: It’s a fun time to bond with your colleagues who you may not get to interact with much on a day-to-day basis.

With all this being said, employers want to see a return on investment if they are to support a healthy work environment and allow employees the freedom to take frequent movement breaks. The data is everywhere, and the math is simple, really. Healthy employees don’t take as many sick days as those with unhealthy lifestyles. Active employees are far less prone to Type II diabetes, heart attacks, strokes and cancer. They can be more productive at their jobs because they feel good and not sluggish every day. Since many employers provide health insurance to their staff, it only makes sense to lower your healthcare costs by promoting an active workforce.

If you don’t have a wellness program at your organization, it may be time to implement one.

Hilary Gardner is the human resources manager for Marlborough staffing firm The DAVIS Cos.