EXAMINING THE LINK BETWEEN LIFE SKILLS AND WELLNESS
CAN YOU quit smoking if you ’ re wondering how to pay the rent ? Can you even think about nutrition if you ’ re only getting four hours of sleep a night ?
With the best of intentions , employers are embracing the concept of wellness initiatives in the workplace . But before you launch your first tobacco cessation program , you need to consider the life skills each employee brings to the table . And be prepared : they run the gamut .
It is becoming increasingly apparent that the wellbeing of individuals is inextricably linked to life skills and general health in equal measure . How well your employees manage time and stress is just as critical as some of the more obvious and direct health variables , such as body mass index ( BMI ) or tobacco use . At A . I . M . Mutual Insurance Companies , we take both ends of the spectrum into account , advocating a truly holistic approach to worksite wellness .
Historically , our society focused on things such as tobacco and alcohol use , weight , and related dietary factors in developing a worksite wellness program . Insurance premium differentials were introduced to employers as an incentive to build a healthy workforce . In turn , that translated to some financial pressure on the employee to achieve the employer ’ s goal . Worksite wellness programming , as a direct consequence , put a heavy focus on changing the behaviors that would yield the highest return on investment ( ROI ) for health care . And that ROI could really only be measured for those who were self-insured .
The result ? Wellness programs may be compromised from the outset . One pervasive misconception is that new hires automatically come equipped with the life skills needed for personal success . Often , that is simply not the case . That great new employee who looked so good on paper and during the interview may lack some of the basic skills you had assumed he or she possessed , like being able to manage time properly or achieve a work / life balance . What A . I . M . Mutual is discovering through its A . I . M . Works : The Wellness Advantage program is that life skills may actually serve as the foundation for
wellness or well-being , inside and outside the workplace .
If employees are chronically missing deadlines or falling behind on paying bills , how can they be expected to change addictive behaviors such as the use of tobacco or bad dietary habits ? Annual assessments through the A . I . M . Works program show that an average of 5.5 percent of individuals report suffering in the area of overall life satisfaction , nearly twice the United States average of 3 percent noted by Gallup in 2011 . In addition , 18 percent of individuals reported a lack of confidence in managing their personal finances and almost 80 percent of employees reported experiencing sleep deprivation ( i . e ., getting less than seven hours of sleep per night ).
The bottom line is that if employees are unable to manage their personal lives adequately — whether it concerns personal finances , sleep , or general state of satisfaction — how can employers hope to see improvements in workforce health ? Often , the variables that are used to determine overall health ( e . g ., weight , tobacco use , etc .) are a result of stress-coping mechanisms stemming from that same lack of life skills .
For sustainable health behavior changes in employees and a potential higher ROI for companies , it would behoove employers to assess the current life skills of their staff while allowing room for healthy life skills to develop if a deficit is detected . The days of fortyhour work weeks , two-point-five children , two-parent households , and a secure educational system that teaches life-coping strategies are , unfortunately , a thing of the past . To truly have happier , healthier , and more productive employees with a lower turnover rate , employers may need to identify and foster fundamental life skills development on-the-job in conjunction with worksite wellness .
To find out more about the A . I . M . Works : The Wellness Advantage program , contact wellness coordinator Colleen Hyde at chyde @ aimmutual . com .
Martha Gagnon
Tucker O ’ Day is a Specialist in Healthcare and Human
Services for Injury Prevention & Worksite Wellness Martha Gagnon , employee benefits at A . I and . M . Mutual wellness . She specialist has consulted at A . I . M in . the Mutual field , of manages the A . I . M . Works : The occupational Wellness Advantage ergonomics program and safety and for assists over 15 years . employers in obtaining additional
She holds employee an M . S benefits . in Physical through Therapy
Associated from Washington
Industries of Massachusetts . Before joining A . I . M . Mutual in 2013 , she was University and an . S . in Occupational Ergonomics & director of worksite health initiatives for the American Cancer Society . Safety from University of MA-Lowell in addition to a
B . A . in Economics and French from Boston College
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