Did you know that in a recent survey conducted on Australian workers:
- 62% are overweight of which 28% are clinically obese
- 10% are completely inactive
- 46% are on high saturated fat diets and only 8% consume 5 or more serves of fruit and vegetables per day
- 53% of Australian workers feel stressed or overwhelmed
- 56% are participating in medium to high risk behaviours such as daily smoking and excess alcohol consumption
- 56% of employees get less than 7 hours of sleep
- 21% have experienced a medical condition in the last three months including back and neck pain (29%), heart disease (21%), migraine headaches (14%), asthma (13%) and depression (13%)
The issue is, this leads to an increase in lifestyle related disease, an increase in absenteeism, as well as a decrease in presenteeism (being at work, but due to illness or other health conditions, not fully functioning).
With Australians spending approximately 1/3 of their life at work, the workplace has now been recognised as a priority setting for health promotion by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Australian government.
What does the evidence say? According to Chapman (2007) *
- 96% of "Best Practice" Australian organisations implemented health and wellbeing initiatives during the last 12months
- Organisation that didn't promote health and wellness were four times more likely to lose talent in the next 12 months
- Workplace health programs results in
- a 25% decrease in sick leave absenteeism
- 40.7% decrease in workers compensation costs
- 24.2% decrease in disability management costs
- $5.81 saving for every $1 invested in employee well being
- Research also showed where workplace health is managed well, financial performance increases more than 2.5 times.
If you believe your workplace or business would benefit from a better understanding around your health, get in contact for a free corporate wellness workshop where we can provide:
- Corporate Wellness Seminars
- Complimentary onsite Bioscans
- Complimentary health consultations
Max Freeman
Director- Vision Personal Training Bondi Junction
Accredited Exercise Physiologist (AEP) B.Com; B.ExPhys
*Chapman, L.S 2007, Proof Positive. Analysis of the Cost Effectiveness of Worksite Wellness, Seattle: Chapman Institute.
*Disclaimer: Individual results vary based on agreed goals. Click here for details.
