In an attempt to keep employees healthy, many workplaces offer wellness programs as part of their employee benefits. However, as a number of business owners can attest, it isn't always easy to get staff members to participate, as some might not be sufficiently inspired to do so. Based on the results of a new study, companies have had a lot of success with financial rewards in incentivizing workers to take part.
According to new research, employees who were offered financial incentives to participate in a company wellness program were 33 times more likely to join in compared to other inducements, The Obesity Society reported.
The reports findings were recently presented at The Obesity Society's Annual Meeting, held in Boston.
Telephone health coaching program participation examined
Researchers came to this conclusion after examining approximately 16,700 employees who were rewarded financially for taking part in wellness programs versus 974,800 who didn't. More specifically, they looked at workers making use of a telephone health coaching program. After three years of observation, the study's analysts discovered that 10 percent of the members offered incentives continued to use the telephone health coaching method, compared to only 0.3 percent who weren't given a money-related inducement but used the program nonetheless.
Jason Block, M.D., assistant professor at Harvard Medical School's Department of Population Medicine, indicated that while a lot still has yet to be discovered about the effectiveness of wellness programs in terms of improving individuals' well-being, the prospective advantages are quite clear.
"Our goal was to evaluate what motivates people to participate in these programs and what strategies companies and insurers can use to get everyone involved," said Block. "Our data show that financial incentives clearly work to motivate participation in a health coach program."
Eric Finkelstein, Ph.D., associate research professor at Duke University's Global Health Institute, pointed out that employer incentives for wellness program participation is a fairly new phenomenon.
"This research gives us a solid foundation to build upon," said Finkelstein. "The next step is to measure changes in these participants' health behaviors, and identify long-term success."
Rewards can sometimes lead to low morale in work environment
The one potential caveat to providing incentives is that they don't always lead to workers continuing to take part in wellness programs over the long-term. Alan Kohll, founder and CEO of a wellness services company in Nebraska, told BenefitsPro that making a long-term commitment can be challenging for employees who may be pressed for time. Additionally, because not everyone will participate despite the financial incentives for doing so, it can sometimes lead to negative feelings and diminished office camaraderie. A "more delicate" way of offering financial rewards may be to provide discounts on gym memberships or cut the cost of healthy food selections at the workplace cafeteria.
Wellness programs are increasingly popular with today's employers, both large and small. Roughly 83 percent of large companies offer them to their workers, up from 52 percent in 2012, BenefitsPro reported. More than three-quarters of small business make wellness programs available as well.
