When Workplace Safety Is Regarded As ‘Overhead’

One very important reason why more than 100 workers (mainly women) died November 25 in the fire that engulfed Tarzeen Fashions, a textile plant outside Dhaka, Bangladesh, is because management chose not to spend the necessary money to prevent such a tragedy from occurring. In an industrial setting, safety can be a significant expense. Safety costs money. And, as we all know, money is everything.

During my tenure as a union rep, I once had a revealing safety-related conversation with a mid-level manager whom I’ll call “Fred.” An outgoing, talkative man roughly my own age, Fred liked to boast that because he had a degree in mechanical engineering, as well as an MBA (both from UCLA), he was exactly the kind of manager a modern company was looking for.

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Age Discrimination

Believe it, or not, job seekers are reporting age discriminationbeginning as early as the mid-thirties. By the time you reach your forties, you can be considered washed up in some industries. There are strategies you can use to help mitigate discrimination issues. There are also laws that prohibit employment discrimination because of age.

Age Discrimination Issues

In addition, to being considered “old,” experienced candidates are some times considered more of an expense (higher salary, pension, benefits costs, etc.) than a younger applicant would be.

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Health Policy Brief: Workplace Wellness Programs

A new Health Policy Brief from Health Affairs and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation examines trends in workplace wellness programs and the potential impact of provisions of the Affordable Care Act of 2010. About two-thirds of companies that offer health benefits to workers also provide a wellness program, such as health-risk assessments and screenings for high blood pressure and cholesterol, tobacco cessation, and weight management.

In 2014 a provision of the Affordable Care Act will expand employers’ ability to reward employees who meet health status goals by participating in wellness programs. In effect, that will mean employees who don’t achieve those goals may have to pay more than others for their employer-sponsored health coverage.

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Will workplace wellness programs work?

In an effort to bring down health-care costs, employers are increasingly turning to workplace wellness programs that reward employees who engage in healthy behaviors — or, alternatively, penalize those who don’t.
Some wellness programs use carrots, decreasing a worker’s health insurance premiums if they enroll in a smoking cessation program or start hitting the gym. Some use sticks, setting higher deductibles or premiums for those who can’t meet a certain body-mass index or do not quit smoking. Both approaches are on the rise: Benefits consulting firm Towers Watson’s annual employer survey finds an increase in workplace wellness programs over the past year, with even more implementation plans in the works for 2013.

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Healthy Workplaces: Leading Organizations Get Ready for June’s National Employee Wellness Month

Out-of-control healthcare costs are a board-level issue for virtually every U.S. organization. Costs continue to climb each year, with no end in sight.  And employees are feeling it, too, paying more out of their pockets for higher premiums.

But there’s a silver lining to this dark cloud.  Seventy-five percent of healthcare costs are attributable to often preventable and highly manageable chronic diseases, such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and some forms of cancer.

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Five Trends Shaping Health and Wellness at the Workplace

1. Fitting It All In: LIFESTYLE MANAGEMENT

Amid the weeknight rush to get home, make dinner, help the kids with homework, do housework and get to bed at a decent hour, finding time for a workout or doctor visit seems nearly impossible. Work is a great place to integrate lifestyle-based healthy habits to fit it all into the day. Efforts such as biometric screenings, flu shots and cholesterol screenings in the workplace help prevent the risks for common, yet dangerous, health problems including diabetes, stroke and coronary disease. Companies are also teaching sleep management to help employees balance life both day and night. Employees can receive various types of incentives like gift cards or insurance premium discounts for participating in company wellness programs, which includes regular, preventative medical appointments.

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Study: Workplace wellness programs help cut healthcare costs

Employees enrolled in workplace wellness programs report reduced personal healthcare costs, most commonly because of fitness center discounts and free preventative screenings, according to the findings of a survey by Principal Financial Group.

While the survey does not quantify the dollar amount saved per employee, Principal’s research does attempt to do so on the corporate level.

Survey results show that employers who invest in wellness programs see increased employee retention, attendance, and productivity. The numbers show that medical costs improve “by an average of $3.27 and absenteeism costs improve by an average of $2.73 for every dollar spent on wellness.”

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