Background and Methods Eagle County Public Health and Environment (ECPHE) is working to make sure workplace wellness programs in Eagle, Grand, Jackson, Pitkin and Summit Counties meet the needs of all employees. To understand better how to do so, ECPHE gathered feedback from a committee of local employers during a facilitated discussion of issues impacting employees’ health and from 17 Eagle and Summit County employees of diverse racial, ethnic, and socio-economic backgrounds through individual interviews. The interviewed employees worked at grocery stores, local newspapers, retail stores, home improvement stores, health organizations, hospitality, County departments, schools/youth programs, gas stations, and community resource centers.

Responses from Employee Interviews Most employees reported their jobs affected their health in positive and negative ways. Employees also described current wellness programs at their work and ideas for new programs to support employee wellbeing.

Promoting Health for All Through Workplace Wellness Programs:

Responses from the Community

Positive Impacts Negative Impacts

Personal wellbeing was increased through flexible work schedules and the ability to spend time with family in the afternoons, care for sick family members, or be present before or after a death

Satisfaction was increased through time to mingle with coworkers, speaking with coworkers in one’s native language, and strong leadership support

Employees felt valued and respected by leadership through open communication, ability to vote on decisions that affected them, and opportunities for cross-training and professional development

Employees felt stressed when: They had to balance different concerns of

frontline staff and managers, and/or had two managers with different ideas

Managers pushed for more output in the same amount of time

Clients pressured them to provide services quickly

Clients or managers made subtle but offensive comments or actions

They received low wages, were not guaranteed 40 hour work weeks, received limited notice of work schedules, worked long hours (10-12 hour work days)

June 2016

Programs Viewed Favorably Programs That Raised Concerns

Health insurance, especially with vision and dental coverage and discounted fees

Paid Time Off (PTO), especially when vacation and sick time were collected separately and could be spent with sick family members

Financial support for GED and college courses, informational workshops on health care and retirement, and language classes (i.e., English and Spanish classes to promote bilingualism)

Bonuses or discounts for high-scoring health, which some employees felt favored those already healthiest and were unfair to those with long-term health challenges

Programs limited to full-time employees (i.e., part-time or seasonal workers were ineligible)

Discounts for recreational centers and weight-loss programs employees could not afford

Examples of Current Workplace Wellness Program Elements

Examples of Employee Suggestions for Workplace Wellness Programs

Physical Health

On-site physical therapist to assist with correct body position, exercises for work and home, and treatment

Collaborations with massage schools for free or discounted massage

Walking meetings

Lunchtime fitness programs

Meaningful discounts for a variety of health and wellness programs in the community

Individual nutrition advising

Mental Health

Stress management classes

Individual and/or group counseling

Employee education to raise awareness of benefits of counseling and mental health support

Education and Resources

General health education

Information about community resources, especially those available in Spanish and to undocumented immigrants

Company health fair with free testing, screenings, and education for a variety of health issues

Basic Human Needs

Housing assistance

Food assistance, including bulk purchase of expensive food products

Financial management classes

Group pool of PTO time, allowing colleagues to help an employee who might otherwise lose a job for a needed leave

Recommendations

The employee interviews and discussion with the committee of employers led to the following recommendations:

Begin with Employers

Improve employer understanding of policies and practices affecting health, as well as the benefits of paying attention to employees’ culture and socio-economics in designing workplace wellness programs. Talk with leaders about injustices impacting employees’ health. Share examples of programs that unintentionally benefit those with the greatest health (i.e., financial benefits for those with the highest scores on health screenings, as opposed to those with most improvement) or unintentionally exclude certain populations (i.e., classes conducted solely in English). Explain how benefits (e.g., heath cost savings, increased employee retention and morale, increased productivity) multiply when programs reach those experiencing the greatest risks for health inequities.

Encourage leaders and administrators to spend time in different workspaces and building relationships. Promote leadership understanding of employees’ work environments and personal lives, leading to a better understanding of employee health needs.

Provide leaders, supervisors, and managers additional supports to increase program effectiveness. Offer trainings, coaching, or peer mentoring to build skills in supporting diverse staff.

Prepare leaders and supervisors to model healthy practices. Urge leaders to participate visibly in workplace wellness programs, in order to demonstrate organizational commitment and encourage employees, especially those from cultures where a fitness, stretch or mental health break is

uncommon. Commit to a Multi-Step Process that Engages Employees Throughout

1. Solicit employee input on desired workplace wellness programs through multiple ways and in the languages employees prefer. Emphasize an all-inclusive approach to wellness that incorporates all human needs (i.e., physiological needs, safety and security, belonging, self-esteem, etc.)

2. Design programs to include a variety of options and accommodations for various situations.

3. Clearly communicate with employees about the program in both written and oral forms and in employees’ preferred languages. Give employees opportunities to ask questions.

4. Find wellness champions, especially among underrepresented cultural groups, and utilize leadership and peer support to engage all employees. Offer positive reinforcement for healthy changes regardless of an individual’s starting point.

5. Assign staff to oversee wellness activities, monitor participation, and review health data by race and other important subpopulations to track trends. Gather additional feedback and adapt programs to encourage use across all cultural and socio-economic groups.

Conclusion

Workplace wellness programs can improve employees’ health while increasing job satisfaction and productivity and reducing health care costs. Strategically designed programs that consider employees’ cultures and socio-economics and provide options for supporting their social, mental, and physical health are likely to have a significant impact.

For questions regarding this project, contact Katie Haas at 970-328-8855 or Katie.Haas@EagleCounty.us

For the full report, please visit : www.eaglecounty.us/PublicHealth/Healthy_Communities/WorkWell_Collaborative/