Employee Wellness: Why Does It Even Matter?

Tee teaching staff during one of the annual Fitness To A Tee Health & Wellness Weeks at the Victoria Falls Hotel, Zimbabwe.

Non communicable diseases on a global level

The World Health Organisation (WHO) states that Non Communicable Diseases ("NCD's") are the leading cause of death worldwide. Non communicable means diseases that are not able to be transmitted from one person to another.

Such diseases are ones which are mainly caused by lifestyle conditions such as diabetes; cancer; stroke; and heart disease. I call them "lifestyle conditions" because WHO states that the causes of these diseases are preventable e.g. obesity/being overweight; the types of foods that we are consuming nowadays such as processed, high sugar foods and insufficient exercise or physical activity.

Tee taking staff at the Royal Ear & Eye Hospital, Melbourne through a workout after their work day.

Tee educating guests onboard the P&O Arcadia on digestive health & various lifestyle conditions.

Why is it important to focus on Employee Wellness?

This is vital because out of a world population of approximately 7 billion, about 3 billion make up the global workforce - according to the World Bank and International Labour Organisation.

Bearing in mind that for those who work, they spend a majority of their lives at work - it is significant that they have measures in place in the workplace - to get and/or keep healthy.

Employees; their families & the wider community

Any impact made through Wellness programs in the workplace will mean that this will filter through to the wider community as those employees with families will share their learning and positively affect their co-workers; families and friends.

Physical health

The physical health of employees can be improved by implementing Wellness programs which help to reduce the impact of NCD's, through having various forms of exercise classes either during work break hours or after work. These can range from resistance based training to Yoga and Group Meditation.

This can also be solidified with Health talks to increase awareness for employees about which diseases are affecting us the most and how they can reduce the impact of these diseases for themselves and their families.

Mental and emotional health

By improving the physical health of employees through exercise which increases endorphins ("the happy hormone") in the body, mental health and emotional health are improved as exercise is one of the methods used to treat stress, anxiety or depression.

The employer and the economy

For the employer, there are numerous benefits to having Employee Wellness programs. Some of the benefits are as follows:

- improved physical, mental and emotional health of employees means a happier atmosphere in the workplace;

- increased productivity due to improved health of employees. Exercise and eating healthier also boosts employee's self-confidence, which then filters through to their work quality;

- lower turnover rates, particularly if employers also ensure that employees are not over-worked, leading to "burn out"; and

- the financial standing of the employer is improved and also the wider economy is improved on a local, national and global level when the workforce is more productive.

Tee (in pink top) after taking Staff at Chadamombe Primary School through a workout after their work day.

Tee educating the Grounds staff at Victoria Falls Hotel on cancer and eating healthier to reduce the risk of certain cancers.

You can start today!

Whether you're an employee, sole trader or business owner in charge of several employees, here are a few easy stretches you can do to take a small break right from your work area. They take under 3 minutes to complete.

Neck stretch, particularly if you are using a computer throughout the day. Turn head slowly from side to side. Exhale through the mouth as you turn, inhale through the nose as you bring the head in towards the middle. Repeat x 2.

Shoulders stretch, particularly if you are using a computer throughout the day. Roll shoulders forward slowly. Exhale through the mouth as you roll them up, inhale through the nose as you roll them down, squeezing the shoulder blades together. Then roll them backwards. Do 10 times in each direction.

Full body stretch. Lift up hands to the sky as you come up on your toes. Exhale as you reach up, inhale as you come back down. If you can't lift up the hands, keep them on your hips. Repeat x 10.

For details and enquiries about Fitness To A Tee Corporate Wellness programs, contact Personal Trainer Teurai by clicking here now or sending an email to fitness@fitnesstoatee.com.au