One of the nation's greatest public health policy successes of the past ten years may be the widespread implementation of corporate wellness policies.

In fact, a recent notice from the Federal government states, "The Departments believe that appropriately designed wellness programs have the potential to contribute importantly to promoting health and preventing disease." In this case, "the Departments" refer to the US Department of Health and Human Services, the US Department of Labor, and the US Department of the Treasury.

The same notice reports that "wellness programs have become common among employers in the United States...[and] overall, employers largely report that workplace wellness programs are delivering on their intended benefit of improving health and reducing costs."

So, how are corporate wellness programs promoting physical activity?

According to a recent survey by Kaiser/HRET, 30% of all firms surveyed offer gym memberships or provide an onsite fitness facility. This includes 64% of large employers.

The importance of promoting physical activity as a core component of a corporate wellness program was underscored recently by a study published in the November 2012 issue of Health Affairs, which found that employer health care costs are 15.3% higher for physically inactive employees than active employees.

But persuading employees to adopt healthier behaviors, such as regular physical activity, can be exceedinly challenging and simply offering gym memberships or building an onsite fitness center is not likely to convert many employees from inactive to active.

"The key to success," says Bryan O'Rourke, IHRSA member and CEO of Integerus, "is a combination of facility design, and more importantly, an organizational commitment to a comprehensive wellness program."

And that commitment, according to fitness industry experts, must significantly impact the corporate culture.

"The percentage of participation of the workforce that participates in a wellness program or company-built fitness facility is really dependent on the company culture," notes Vaughn Marxhausen, Area General Manager for Houstonian Lite. "This culture starts at the top and filters down. It is usually difficult to increase participation or grow a program, if the culture of wellness is not present." I highly recommend his "The 3 Ps of Participation" strategy.

In this excellent video, Christine Thalwitz, Director of Communications & Research at ACAC Fitness & Wellness Centers, discusses specific strategies for creating a culture of wellness. The video is a must-see for any fitness company interested in corporate wellness.

From a corporate policy perspective, the National Coalition for Promoting Physical Activity's CEO Pledge, which not only confirms a CEO's commitment to providing a supportive environment for employee physical activity, but also asserts the CEO's own intent to be physically active, may also be one of the most meaningful and effective strategies for creating a corporate culture of wellness.

"With most working adults spending roughly half their waking hours on the job on the days that they work, it is incumbent upon business and industry leaders to become part of the solution," says IHRSA President/CEO and CEO Pledge signer, Joe Moore. "By promoting physical activity and healthy lifestyles within the workplace, CEOs help their company's bottom line, but they also help society."

Everyone knows that physical activity is good for us... right? Okay, maybe not everyone, but certainly the vast majority of adults and many, many children, as do policymakers, healthcare professionals, etc. Yet so few of us regularly attain the daily recommendations in the National Physical Activity Guidelines. The million dollar question is: WHY?

The most popular reason listed is time, or lack thereof. For many adults, the amount of time they spend at work and commuting to/from work is in excess of 10 hours a day. Add in other responsibilities - such as children, or perhaps, classes - and there is not much left of their waking hours. While a federal mandate reducing work hours for all would be great, it is clearly not realistic. But, what can be done is to look at how physical activity can be incorporated into the commute and/or the work day, and what role a community plays in helping to make this happen.

Take the commute. There are a variety of ways that physical activity can be integrated into commuting. The National Physical Activity Plan's Transportation and Active Living sector has identified several immediate priorities dedicated to active transportation. Employers, federal and state legislators, as well as communities and individuals themselves must work together if policy change that will encourage active commuting is going to happen.  

Communities can insure that bike racks are installed at transit stations and that commuter parking lots are safe, well lit, and in inclement weather, provide clear sidewalks. Communities could work with employers to institute a bicycle sharing program with locations at local transit stations as well as in areas conducive to places of employment. Such programs allow individuals to "borrow a bike" for a very nominal fee and are increasing in popularity.

And now for the workday... when thinking of communities, we often silo them as their own entities, with their own activities and priorities for serving their residents. We don't often think of them working in partnership with the companies, etc. that may be in their boundaries. Working together with employers, communities can make great strides in helping more people log increased physical activity during the workday. Perhaps a brochure could be developed for those working in the community, highlighting facilities, parks, etc. that are available for physical activity. Another thought is using the employees as focus groups to help determine development and expansion of things like walking trails. Is there a lovely corporate campus headquarter that might be the perfect setting for construction of a non-motorized trail that could serve the needs of both the employees and community residents? Can special rates be offered for a community fitness facility to those that are working in the community but might not be residents? Employees might be new recruiting ground for volunteer youth sport coaches or additional teams for existing or new adult sports leagues.

What ideas do you have for how communities can work together with companies, etc. to make it easier for employees and residents to engage in fitness activities?

Work sites are important partners in promoting physical activity with their employees.   Healthcare costs can be reduced by having physically active employees.  Many organizations recognize that healthcare costs can be reduced by promoting physical activity but lack the tools to do so.  The release of the 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans and related information on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site provides an opportunity to promote physical activity together with information about physical activity and the management of chronic diseases. Additionally, the Task Force on Community Preventive Services recommends worksite programs to improve diet and/or physical activity behaviors based on strong evidence of their effectiveness for reducing weight among employees. We would like to share several CDC resources for the workplace.

Business Case for Physical Activity

A toolkit will be available that will build on the most effective materials and practices for promoting opportunities for physical activity in the work place. At the same time, the toolkit will include information about the new Physical Activity Guidelines as a key part of promoting increased activity. While the toolkit may be shared directly with business groups, this resource will be particularly useful to nutrition and physical activity promotion state and local community programs, as well as other chronic disease state programs. Look for announcements about this new resource on this blog and on the CDC DNPAO listserv later this year.

Lean Works

As a Web-based resource, Lean Works!, offers interactive tools and evidence-based resources to design effective worksite obesity prevention programs. The site includes an obesity cost calculator to estimate how much obesity is costing a company and how much the company could save by using different workplace interventions. The site also includes a step by step approach for organizations to develop such interventions: Why, Plan, Build, Promote, and Assess.

CDC’s Healthier Worksite Initiative (HWI)

The Healthier Worksite Initiative is guided by an advisory committee made up of representatives from many CDC centers and locations. HWI has worked on improving stairs, the cafeteria, and walking trails, implemented fitness discounts, and modified policies for healthier foods at CDC-sponsored meetings and events. This Web site is comprised of lessons learned from these

CDC activities for program design.

There is also a wealth of new policies and steps for implementing similar programs in work sites. For example, one policy section contains specific policies that impact healthy promotion at federal workplaces, including laws, regulations, and rules to promote voluntary and legally binding behavior. The Web site includes many toolkits available from other programs: general workforce health promotion, nutritious eating, physical activity, preventive health screenings, and healthy choices.  There is also guidance on how to use and adapt the toolkits.

Chronic Disease web portal

The CDC Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP) will soon have a Web portal providing links to all of the CDC Chronic Disease prevention work site toolkits and resources. Look for this resource later in 2010. 

Does anyone have an example of an effective promotion of the Physical Activity Guidelines by a business or at a worksite? If so, we are interested in hearing about it and might be interested in featuring it in one of the worksite toolkits or Web sites.