Global Report Provides Fresh Insight Into Workplace Wellness

LONDON, March 19, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading workplace health programme, Global Corporate Challenge® (GCC) has released its latest report on workplace wellness practice. Featuring the viewpoints of HR, OH&S and corporate wellness personnel worldwide*, the 2013 Global Workplace Health & Wellness Report provides fresh insight into how organisations approach wellness, their successes, challenges and improvement opportunities. 

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Key findings:

• Wellness is firmly on the global business agenda
  95% of organisations have or plan to have a fully implemented wellness strategy. 41% have commenced and 22% completed implementation. Only a 5% minority continue to ignore the negative workplace impact of employee ill-health and the opportunity - and responsibility – to improve this.
• Focus on long-term behavioural change
  84% of organisations want to empower long-term behaviour change. Organisations are increasingly recognising the sustained outcomes of behavioural change-based wellness strategies in achieving health risk reduction and improved performance in employees. Physical inactivity leads as the top risk behaviour addressed, followed by stress and poor nutrition. Short-sighted "quick fix" approaches are phasing out.
• Employee participation is both a top-ranking concern and barrier
  Wellness initiatives are achieving less than 20% participation on average, well short of organisations' 60% participation goals. Lack of time and interest are cited as top barriers to employee participation, highlighting the potential for greater programme flexibility and enjoyment to achieve perception change and improved engagement.
• High-risk employees remain elusive
  78% of respondents admit difficulty attracting higher-risk employees, only 21% are successful in doing so. These are the employees who need intervention and cost workplaces most.  To engage these often reluctant or sceptical employees, initiatives must be appealing to and accessible by employees of all ages, abilities and health status. Greater focus here could boost participation levels by these more evasive employees and vastly increase business returns.
• Fun: fundamental but forgotten
  45% of organisations cite employee perceptions of wellness initiatives as lacking in fun and engagement as a major barrier to participation. A resounding 99% rate "fun" as medium-to-high importance and with only 10% reporting their initiatives actually having very high levels of fun, this presents a powerful opportunity to increase participation through enjoyment.

The full report is available at http://www.gettheworldmoving.com/blog/global-health-and-wellness-2013-report

*collected via an online survey of 378 organisations.

Media enquiries:  
Please contact Diana Zuban, GCC Global PR & Communications Manager
T: +61-3-9536-8158   E: dianaz@gettheworldmoving.com