Employees Want Improved Wellbeing Programs

Polls from Willis Towers Watson found 56 percent of employers say their wellbeing programs encourage a healthier lifestyle among participants, but only 32 percent of employees agreed, reports Plan Sponsor . To address this disparity, Willis Towers Watson says employers are considering ancillary paths to change health behaviors, including financial incentives. In 2017, 46 percent of employees said they would only participate in wellbeing programs if compensated, up from 35 percent in 2011. Willis Towers Watson suggests countering this by having plan sponsors reassess the link between program design and longer-term participant behavioral changes. The survey found employees with poor health are twice as likely to be disengaged at work than those with better health, and take three times as many days off. Willis Towers Watson determined three in five employees use technology to manage health, and one in four use wearables to track fitness activity or sleep. Moreover, as technology penetrates the retirement planning area, employers may seek to incorporate online tools, such as social media, to connect with participants. Willis Towers Watson encourages integrating health-conscious workplace environments designed to prompt participants to eat clean, exercise, breathe fresh air, and resolve stress, for example by establishing on-site or near-site services. "High-performing companies are already revamping their approaches by targeting chronic conditions, evaluating the workplace environment to better support well-being, and using social networks to engage employees more effectively," notes Willis Towers Watson's Shelley Wolff.