In addition to providing health and ancillary benefits, employers are looking for workplace wellness programs to help improve employee health, reduce healthcare costs and increase productivity. Insurance brokers are in a unique position to help employers choose and implement workplace wellness programs and communicate the program to employees.Wellness program success depends on communications.

According to a study sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, there are five key facilitators of workplace wellness programs:

1. Effective communication strategies. Communication strategies range from face-to-face interaction to wide circulation of information. To be effective, the information must be engaging and broadcast year round.
2. Opportunity for employees to engage. For maximum participation, wellness programs must be convenient and easily accessible to all employees. Employees might fail to participate if hindered by rigid work schedules or long wait times.
3. Leadership engaged at all levels. Senior management and direct supervisors need to consider wellness an organizational priority, be willing to encourage employees to take advantage of the program, and most importantly, participate in it themselves.
4. Use of existing resources and relationships. This is especially important to brokers, because of the synergy between health insurance plans and wellness programs. In fact, many insurance plans include wellness benefits, such as personalized health assessments, health trackers, symptom checkers and interactive education tools.
5. Continuous evaluation. At minimum, an employer should solicit feedback from workers to determine what is effective and what should be included in future wellness programs. However, a comprehensive wellness assessment can provide a wealth of information that can be used to build and manage the wellness program.

Why Employees Don’t Participate and How to Fix That

There are many reasons employees don’t participate in a company’s workplace wellness program. However, the various reasons can include:

• Lack of awareness
• Not enough time
• Inconvenience
• Privacy concerns
• Security concerns
• Lack of management support
• No interest or feeling that they can make changes on their own

To increase engagement, employers can use the following communication methods:

• Display posters around the workplace. Posters are readily available to promote healthy behaviors like smoking cessation, proper diet, stress reduction, regular exercise and annual checkups.
• Post information. They can place wellness program info on the company’s website or intranet.
• Use bulletin boards and kiosks. The organization should provide easy access to flyers, pamphlets and brochures. Many of these items might be available from health insurance carriers and other vendors free of charge.
• Conduct health fairs. Open enrollment is a great time to do this.
• Invite vendor demonstrations. Local healthcare vendors are often willing to provide presentations of their services.
• Send email notices. Make sure program information is communicated regularly.
• Formally introduce corporate policies. These can state the importance of the wellness program.
• Select a creative name or theme for the wellness program. This not only generates excitement about the program, but also promotes a sense of ownership among the participants.
• Elect a committee of spokespersons. They can promote the plan to their peers and coworkers. Also, an endorsement from the company president or CEO is an effective technique that is cost-free.
• Solicit testimonials. Satisfied participants in the wellness program may be willing to state why.

To reinforce their relationships with their employer clients, more brokers are providing information and advice on how to implement wellness programs. In addition to giving advice, brokers can act as a link between wellness vendors and employers. But, perhaps the most valuable service is helping employers communicate the wellness program to their employees so that participation will increase.