Employers’ Cash Incentive for Workers to Join a Gym

Would you go to the gym if your employer paid for you to get fitter and healthier? That’s the incentive on offer from one American local authority.

Washington County, in Tennessee, is planning to give its full-time workers $300 every six months, effectively paying for their monthly gym membership, with the long-term aim of saving the county on insurance claims.

If the wellness program is given the go-ahead by county commissioners, the cash incentive will kick in and those employees who qualify for the deal will be asked to join a gym that focuses on cardiovascular wellness. In return for their employer funding their gym membership, workers must go to the gym three times a week or at least 75 times during the six-month period.

The program is being part-funded by a grant from Washington County’s health insurers with the local authority footing the rest of the bill. Washington County has 500 employees who would qualify for the program.

The average monthly gym membership in the county is $50 and even if an employee joins a qualifying gym where membership fees are less, they will still receive the full $300 every six months, making the incentive that little bit more enticing.

And the more employees who join the same gym, the cheaper their monthly fees will be as the employer can qualify for a corporate membership discount.

There is a serious point to the wellness program with Washington County keen to improve the health of its employees, particularly heart health, and so reduce its long-term insurance bill.