It used to be that implementing an employee wellness programme meant simply putting a few posters up in the office encouraging people to take care of their wellbeing. Some companies may have stretched as far as having a gym in the office, but that was really about it. Nowadays, however, businesses are starting to plough real money into programmes, using cash incentives – or even penalties – to get workers in better shape.
In fact, according to a recent survey from Fidelity Investments and the National Business Group on Health, nearly 90% of employers offer wellness incentives, or financial rewards or prizes to employees who work toward getting healthier. In 2009, this number was at a mere 57% in comparison, and the perks were lower too. Four years ago, the average US employee might expect an incentive of $260, but now they can rake in an average of $521. Fidelity benefits consultant Adam Stavisky comments, ‘They feel that if they pay more they’ll get a better result.’ But is this really the case? Stephanie Pronk, health and wellness consultant with Aon AON, argues, ‘Incentives themselves are not the silver bullet. It’s really important to change up the incentive design and keep people on their toes.’ With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the popular incentive programmes in use today.
1. Educational/Awareness Incentives: Jen Wieczner, a reporter for The Wall Street Journal’s MarketWatch, explains, ‘Companies offer rewards for completing activities that include an assessment of their personal health and risk factors. These can range from filling out a questionnaire about family medical history, diet and fitness routine, to taking a biometric screening for cholesterol, blood pressure and other factors.’ The Lockton Benefit Group state that your incentives need to be worth at least £60 to get about 75% of employees to participate, otherwise you’re looking at a participation rate of 30-50%. The pros here are that you introduce your workers to healthy behaviour and personal risk factors, as well as being able to tailor future endeavours to employee needs. However, your workers about their health risks won’t necessarily lead them to take action.
2. Incentives Based on Actions: In this wellness programme, your employees take action to improve their health to earn awards or to avoid penalties. Houston city employees, for example, have to complete three tasks in order to avoid a $25 monthly payroll surcharge. These include filling out a health-risk assessment, taking a biometric screening, talking to a health coach, signing up for a programme like Weight Watchers or getting a screening such as a mammogram. As a result, 90% of employees have completed three of the tasks or more, so you can see how motivational this model is. However, the con of this model is that the incentives don’t encourage long term healthy behaviour, only enough to complete the required programmes.
3. Everything-But-the-Kitchen-Sink Incentives: You offer your employees incentives for an array of tasks, with bigger and complex tasks corresponding to bigger rewards. The plus point of this approach is that you give your workers to freedom to choose their own health activities, which they enjoy. JetBlue Airways Corp is one such company who goes in for DIY incentives, offering anything from $25 for a teeth cleaning, to $400 for completing an Ironman triathlon. Pronk notes that a wellness programme that lays out a tempting trail to follow will have more success keeping people involved. Still, the variety of options can be overwhelming for your employees, and you might be wasting your money on activities that aren’t effectively addressing your workers’ biggest health problems.