It’s pretty intuitive for most business owners that having healthy workers makes for a better company, and it would be hard to find someone to argue that sickly or unwell employees make for a more productive, cost-effective, and reliable workforce. And yet, shockingly few managers actually take the time to sit down and think over why that is.
When budget season rolls around, it seems so much easier to cut or dismiss employee wellness programs to save a monthly cost when employee health is viewed as an abstraction, but when you really logic it out, it’s easy to see why these programs can have such a strong return on investment. So what makes wellness programs so effective as a long-term business investment strategy? Here are just a few reasons why employee health should be a priority for your company:
A well-kept workforce brings in more profits
This one should be a no-brainer. Have you ever worked while sick? Sure you have. It’s terrible. You can’t focus, your body moves more slowly, and the productive hours in your day are cut drastically. If you aren’t feeling 100%, then you aren’t giving 100%, and if it’s true for you, it’s true for your team as well. And yet, you’re paying your employees for the same hours worked each day regardless of the productivity of those hours.
If your employees are working while acutely sick, or just generally not at their best, then you’re paying for lower productivity which means fewer profits for the business at the end of the day. You likely offer sick days as a benefit because you know that an employee that takes a day to recover will come back and be much more productive in the long run, and wellness programs work on the same logic. A relatively small up-front cost to keep your employees at their healthiest will pay dividends on the back end.
Retain workers by keeping them happy
While it can be tempting to think about employee wellness from a pure productivity standpoint, it’s also vitally important to recognize the human element that health and wellness brings in. Happy and healthy employees are far less likely to leave an organization, and any business operator should already be well aware that employee turnover can be a massive cost for any company.
Between new employee acquisition costs, training costs, loss of time and work resulting in the loss of an employee, and the hit to employee morale that comes from seeing coworkers leave, you should prioritize reducing turnover and focus on doing what you can to retain talent. This means not only offering wellness programs that keep employees physically healthy, but showcasing them as a benefit that keeps them emotionally happy and healthy as well. Once again, wellness programs can prove themselves to be an investment that pays off down the road.
Healthy businesses enjoy lower premium costs
Investments in employee happiness and higher retention rates are all well and good, but did you know that employee wellness programs can actively help you cut down your company bills? For better or worse, our healthcare system is set up in a way that makes insurance more expensive for people in worse health. “High-risk” individuals are often charged higher premiums and cost employers more per month to insure than “low-risk” individuals.
Therefore, employee wellness programs that strive to bring high-risk employees down into the low-risk category and keep low-risk employees in that same category can make for lower overall healthcare costs incurred by the company. This isn’t some abstract argument either: The CDC itself has found that “well-implemented workplace health programs” can cut company healthcare costs by 25% on average in addition to the other benefits listed above.
Health Quotient powered by TCO
So where to begin? Health Quotient powered by Twin Cities Orthopedics is a direct-to-employer health and wellness service that skips dealing with the insurance provider and instead directly connects your employees with the tools, recommendations, and wellness resources they need to improve and maintain their health. As a trusted healthcare partner, Health Quotient powered by TCO provides the best option to keep your employees happy and healthy by working with local options such as The Gym MPLS, your employees get preferred access to top-quality health and wellness resources along with virtual and on-site services.
Health Quotient by TCO is a trustworthy and reliable partner with a proven track record of measurable results: companies partnering with this program have seen a 50% reduction in injuries, 30% reduction in associated healthcare costs, and a 99% user satisfaction rating. Simply put, the program pays for itself.
For more information on how you can save money with a healthier workforce thanks to Health Quotient powered by TCO, email Joel@TheGymMPLS.com or call (763) 744-8913. And while you’re at it, follow The Gym MPLS on Instagram (@trainwithapex/@thegymmpls) for daily motivation, tips for trainers, and more.
