3 Ways To Motivate Your Employees To Take Part In A Corporate Wellness Program

According to the Gallup Business Journal, 85% of companies that employ over 1,000 people have a corporate wellness program in place. Unfortunately though, only around 24% of employees take part in these programs. If you are having trouble with employee participation in your wellness program, here are three things you can do to try to get more employees involved in it.

Promote It

The Gallup Business Journal also reports that 40% of employees that have access to a program do not know there is one in place. If you have a wellness program in place, you must inform your employees about it, and you can do this by:

• Sending letters or emails – any type of correspondence that goes directly to the employees will help inform them about the program. Make sure you stress the importance of the program, the services offered, and the benefits this will produce if they participate.
• Hold meetings – you can hold meetings early in the morning, during work, or in the evening hours. Have an experienced representative of the program host the meeting, and make sure it is interesting and informative, and always include a call to action at the end.

Another way to promote your company's program is to have all management take part in it. Managers are role models to the employees, and if they are not taking part, why would you expect the employees to?

Make It Convenient

Modern life is busy for most people, and if the wellness program you offer is not convenient, people will not participate. Here are some ways to accomplish this and encourage participation:

• Offer an on-site gym – a gym located in your company makes it easy for employees to use it. You could allow them to use it before or after work, or even during work hours.
• Create an online program for them to use – if you have a program set up for employees to use, they could use it while they are at work. This program should allow them to set goals, monitor their improvements, and record the tasks they accomplish. If you do this, keep it confidential, because many employees will not want anyone else to know about their health status.
• Bring it to the workplace – offer special types of services at work, such as massages or acupuncture. Have a doctor or healthcare provider visit your company weekly or bi-weekly, and allow your employees to visit the provider.

Anything you do to encourage this program will help increase the employee participation at your company, and this will benefit you and your business. Employees that take part in these programs call off work less, are more productive, and are less likely to have a work-related accident.

Offer Incentives

The Wall Street Journal reports that 90% of employers offer incentive programs to employees, and these are designed to increase employee participation. When employees will receive something tangible from taking part in the program, they may be more inclined to take part.

As you look for ways to get your employees involved, consider these incentives:

• Points that can be redeemed – you might want to issue points for certain tasks they do. When they accumulate enough points, they could redeem them for prizes.
• Cash or gift cards – giving away cash or gift cards is another great type of incentive that might make your employees act.
• Free personal days – you might be able to persuade them to take part by offering personal days or vacation days to those that complete all tasks.
• Free gym membership – if you do not offer a gym on-site, you could offer free memberships to a local gym.

When your employees actively take part in a wellness program, they are likely to become healthier. This will help your company in many ways, and these three tips may help you increase your employee participation at your business. For more information on how to get your corporate wellness program off the ground, visit Figure Weight Loss.