Why Wellness Plans Are Important To Your Employees

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, as the saying goes. The next wave of healthcare cresting on the horizon of employee benefits is wellness plans. In case you haven't been paying attention, your employees are probably more concerned with feeling well than anything else. To prove the point, look at the wellness industry.  Just sit on any street bench and watch people walk by. Chances are, most are wearing a fitness device on their wrist. Why? Because the battle for healthcare dollars now is getting the consumer's mind around feeling well instead of getting healthy. What role do wellness plans play in your employee's lives, and how does that matter to you, the employer?

The shift away from healthy toward wellness started with the grumbling on the Internet that dared to challenge the status quo as to what determined if someone was healthy or not. The growing argument that a person's size doesn’t equal health launched the idea of wellness into the mainstream, capitalizing on this theory that people need to feel well to be successful at anything else health-related.

It is a positive mental spin to focus on wellness; it's less psychologically punitive than being healthy or not. To attain a state of wellness, people exercise, they make dietary decisions based on health benefit instead of pure palate preferences. They are likely to be commenting on their heart rate, step goals, and quality of sleep. How do they know all this information? Their fitness device tells them so! Should employers care about their employees getting on the wellness bandwagon?

Wellness Plans Are An Investment To Keep Productivity High 

What exactly are wellness plans? They are different than healthcare benefits, although any given healthcare plan may offer wellness plans that are part of their options as well. The idea behind any wellness plan is that keeping your employees well means they don't have to use their healthcare benefits later. There are many reasons for keeping your employees well, or keeping their state of well-being at an all-time high; they work harder. 

How productive are you if you feel tired, stressed, or just not feeling good? Paying attention to one's wellness and/or state of well-being is like taking care of a car engine. If you do all the right things to keep your car running smoothly, like regular oil changes, tune-ups, and other preventative maintenance, then you shouldn't have to worry about costly repairs and downtime in the mechanic's shop. The same goes for your employees. 

Employees who are focused on wellness and being mindful about their state of mind come to work ready to face the day. Work for them is purposeful. They are usually more apt to be effective at critical decision making and dealing with unforeseen challenges.

A company that offers wellness plans also sees less turnover. An employee who feels that their employer cares about them is more likely to stay at their job, even if their pay isn't high. Feeling good is a great benefit to your employees.  An employee who maxes out their productivity adds to your bottom line in no time. 

How To Offer Wellness Plans That Won't Crush Your Benefits Budget 

Since wellness is the new focus for employee benefits, especially with talent that has choices with employment, being able to offer what your top talent is looking for is crucial for hiring success. The truth is, most small and medium-sized businesses are feeling pinched by employee benefits already. Where do you come up with the funds?

If your small business health plan doesn't offer wellness plans are part of their offerings, then we have good news for you. PEOs provide the kinds of benefits that most small and medium-sized businesses could only dream of delivering. PEOs allow a smaller company to be able to offer things like retirement options, employee assistance programs, and wellness benefits such as smoking cessation programs, weight loss programs, and more. What are you paying now for small business health benefits, payroll management, and retirement options (if you are even able to offer that)? With one choice of working with a PEO, you can provide all of those things, and wellness plans your employees and hiring recruits will be excited about. 

The war for talent is on. Don't get left out of the battle by not being able to offer the kinds of benefits and wellness plans your larger competitors can. If you want to attract and retain talent and keep productivity high, wellness plans are your best bet. If you'd like to find out more about what kinds of wellness plans and other benefits a PEO can offer your small business, we'd like to help. Contact us today for a free consultation to find out how the right PEO can work hard for your business.