Workplace Wellness: Creating an Incentive Program

If you haven’t already chances are you’re considering implementing a wellness program for your company. The key to any successful wellness program is getting employees to not only participate but do so energetically. The pocket book is the best way to encourage people into action and the Affordable Care Act is actually giving employers more flexibility in this area, allowing you to build in incentives worth up to 30% of your single rate.

A well-crafted incentive program motivates your employees to take steps toward improving their health and well-being – resulting in a positive return on investment for you. To design a solid wellness incentive program at your facility, consider the following steps.

1. Determine what employee actions you want to increase or decrease with the use of an incentive. To determine which incentives to use, consider the behaviors that you want to encourage and the incentive values that have the greatest potential for driving those behaviors. Examples of possible wellness program components and a few incentives for each can be found at the end of this article.
2. Develop guidelines for achieving incentives – exactly what must an employee do to earn a particular award?
3. Create a communication plan to introduce and promote the incentive program.

• The rules of the incentives must be clear and easy to understand.
• Senior management should strongly endorse the program by motivating others and by participating themselves.
• Remind employees of the incentives through frequent, ongoing communication.

Possible wellness program components and incentives for each:

Tobacco Cessation

Incentives to encourage short-term smoking cessation and long-term maintenance of non-smoking:

• Restrict smoking and tobacco usage on your worksite.
• Offer a “performance-based” bonus for quitting smoking.
• Offer a seminar on the health effects of smoking and using tobacco products.
• Provide a prize for employees who abstain from smoking for a year after joining the program (extra day of vacation, discount on health premium, etc.).

Wellness Screenings

Incentives to motivate employees to participate in screenings and help them maintain healthy blood pressure levels:

• Provide on-site screenings on company time.
• Invite employees’ spouses to attend screenings at no cost.
• Provide gift certificates for employees who successfully lower their blood pressure, and for those who maintain a healthy blood pressure level one year after their initial screening.

Physical Activity and Exercise Programs

Incentives to increase the number of employees involved in organized physical activities, and to maintain an exercise routine for the long term:

• Offer early registration discounts for employees who sign on to the program within a specific amount of time.
• Allow participating employees to flex their hours to accommodate an exercise routine.
• Offer free items such as gym bags, water bottles, sweat towels and T-shirts for participating employees.
• Provide a cash incentive for employees who maintain an exercise routine for at least six months following the beginning of the program.

There are multitudes of ways to structure a successful program but the key to success is providing a meaningful incentive. Employers across the country are taking advantage of financial incentives, at Connor & Gallagher we can show you how to join them.