Whether you are an employer or employee, you acknowledge that employees’ benefits, wellness, and fitness cannot be overemphasized. The health of employees is crucial to productivity and the thriving of the business. Employers must certainly concern themselves with their workers’ health, which goes beyond giving them health allowances, risk allowances, and first aid.

A complete health package should include a fitness program fully covered or at least subsidized. This sounds like more cost to the employer, but in an actual sense, it isn’t. This is, in fact, an investment with returns that are not far-fetched. Being strategic about this puts the employer at a benefitting end too.

Before we delve into the benefits employers enjoy from having the fitness and well-being of their employees at heart, consider some of the highly effective fitness programs to fit for the corporate world.

Effective employees’ fitness programs

1. Healthy meals

Eating good and healthy meals at all times is crucial to a healthy life. Employers do not necessarily have to provide food for their employees to ensure that the employees eat well. They can give them ample lunchtime. How is an extended lunchtime going to cut the deal?

Many workers opt for a fast junk meal since they have a few minutes for lunch with a workload awaiting them. Give them enough lunchtime, and they will be able to get a good meal, eat well, allow the food to settle, and have full energy to continue with work.

Once in a while, you can buy a healthy lunch for your employees (if you don’t have a structured free lunch providing service). You can also do this if you realize that their workload is hefty, and going out to get lunch will delay work.

2. Mental health assistance

The fitness programs you decide on for your employees should not just cover physical fitness but also mental well-being. As an employer, you can either support employees personally when facing issues such as all forms of abuse, stress, depression, or anxiety or employ the services of a trained counselor to help with such issues.

Mental health is about those mentioned above and includes a sense of belongingness, appreciation, and acknowledgment. Employers must do well to involve their employees in activities like decision-making to feel like they belong to the company. Appreciation and acknowledgment are equally key.

Employers should make it a point to show appreciation to well-deserving employees either by cash, kind or straightforward “Good job! Thank you!”. A pat on the shoulder won’t kill any boss. If an employee does something remarkable, acknowledge the person, and if possible, let the whole company know what the person has done.

Doing such things will give your employees peace of mind to perform at their best. The confidence and satisfaction of your employees will also be boosted.

3. Socialization and siesta

A short chat time or nap time during or after lunch is never detrimental to the company’s success. It rather leaves the employees re-energized, and they return to their jobs fully loaded. Companies like Facebook and Asana have nap rooms for workers who need to take a quick nap during or after lunch

4. Workout activities

If you have employees who work in a particular posture for a long time, you might want to consider providing them with a gym service. To do this, you won’t have to build a gym at your workplace (you can do this if your resources can support it); instead, you can have them registered at a gym or bring a fitness coach in to guide them through workouts. Paying fully for the gym isn’t compulsory, but at least subsidizing it is thoughtful.

Fitness 1 Gym has amazing packages that are easy on the pocket. Visit our site for more of our packages and promotions. We have seasoned trainers who can guide your employees through the workout activities.

Benefits of employee fitness programs

Do not be quick to think that employee fitness programs benefit only the employees. Here are some of the fantastic benefits an employer enjoys from providing a fitness program for the employees. The best time to begin a fitness program for your corporate team is now. This is why:

i. Increase in productivity

A healthy man is a wealthy man. Productivity is not just maintained at a good level, but subsequently increased when you have healthy people working for you. Healthy employees can think well, work actively, and make good decisions that reflect in the company’s success.

You make them healthy; they make you wealthy. Simple!

ii. Better prevent than cure

It is better to invest money in maintaining good health for your workers than to be compelled to pay for drugs, surgeries, and hospital bills. Getting them on a fitness program will help prevent specific long-term chronic ailments that may involve expensive medications and costly surgeries. You will admit that paying hospital bills for all your employees is far more expensive than getting them a fitness trainer or subsidizing their gym registration fees.

Of course, your employees might catch a cold or cough once in a while, but the likelihood of developing a chronic disease that will render them unproductive and cost you more is greatly reduced if they have a fitness program that keeps them in shape.

At Fitness 1 Gym, it’s even possible to work out some corporate discount or special package for your employees. Cost-effectiveness is assured.

iii. Recruit and retain the pros

Recruiting and retaining employees is a two-way thing. Just as the employee must have a Unique Selling Proposition (USP) to get and retain the job, so does the employer.

Your company must have a unique service for the employees that will attract them and make them want to stay irrespective of their competition. Every employer wants a pro to work with, and it takes an extra offer to attract and retain them. When potential and current employees know you have their health at heart, their loyalty and confidence become yours.

iv. Reduced absenteeism

Companies with a well thought out employees’ fitness program record less absenteeism. Why? Well, all other things being equal, why in the world would a worker stay at home when he/she is as fit as a fiddle thanks to the fitness routine at work?

The employees’ fitness program is also a great motivator for employees to be at work every day. After all, they will have a time when they can rest, eat well, socialize, and even workout to keep themselves fit and active.

To all employers out there, having a strategic fitness program for your employees is a win-win affair. You get healthy people to work well for you, thereby increasing your productivity and eventually profit, they also get a fitness concerned job. Also, note that a good employee fitness program must cater to the employees’ mental, physical, emotional, and financial well-being.

The effectiveness and returns enjoyed from providing a well-structured employees’ fitness program far surpass the cost involved. Don’t forget, “You make them healthy; they make you wealthy.” Did you know you can purchase affordable fitness packages for your employees with Fitness 1 Gym? If you’re looking at maximizing your company’s revenue this year? Prioritize the fitness of your employees by signing them up for our special package today.

REFERENCES

Corporate Finance Institute, Employee Wellness Programs

https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/knowledge/other/employee-wellness-programs/

Fitness Enhancement, Benefits of Corporate Wellness Programs

Margaret Reid, 4 Reasons to Offer Gym Memberships as an Employee Benefit, Jungo HR, June 07, 2018

https://www.jungohr.ca/blog/4-reasons-to-offer-gym-memberships-as-an-employee-benefit