Corporate wellness models that work

Businesses and organizations of all sizes throughout southeastern Wisconsin are taking steps to promote wellness among their employees and lower their health care costs.

The following organizations have been nominated for Corporate Wellness Awards in this year’s Fittest Execs program.

American Cancer Society, Midwest Division Inc.

When employees at the American Cancer Society in Waukesha complete a health risk assessment, they are guaranteed a personalized appraisal that sets specific goals for improving their overall health. As part of improving that overall health, they receive a ‘wellness reimbursement’ to compensate staff for fitness equipment, workout classes and health club memberships.

To encourage healthy eating, a Father’s Day initiative invited staff to submit healthy grilling recipes. Submitting a recipe meant the chance to win a barbeque set. All the recipes were included in an online “healthy recipe box.”

Brookdale Senior Living

Competition is the heart Brookdale Senior Living’s wellness program in Milwaukee. One activity is the ‘Walk to Broadway’ program, where employees are given six months to walk 880 miles, the distance from Milwaukee to New York. Competitors can get prizes at checkpoints along the way, such as fat-free Jelly Bellys from Kenosha. Out of the 200 participants, 40 made it to Broadway and were rewarded with the chance to win tickets to a fine arts production in Milwaukee. Brookdale also has a 12-week wellness and team weight loss challenge modeled after the reality TV show The Biggest Loser. In addition, the company offers an on-site medical clinic where about 100 prescriptions are offered at no cost.

Connecture

Connecture employees are encouraged to “know their numbers” for a wellness campaign to make sure their vitals such as blood pressure, glucose, cholesterol and BMI are always in a healthy range. To make sure those numbers stay where they’re supposed to be, Waukesha-bsed Connecture offers multiple five-week programs to jump start healthier lifestyles such as diabetes information and smoking and stress cessation. Connecture also has different activities to stay active throughout the year, such as a volleyball league in fall, bowling in the winter and “Bi-monthly Unwinders” where employees gather for activities such as indoor golf or Frisbee golf. When employees want to stay active inside the office, they can use the on-site foosball table to challenge co-workers in their foosball tournaments.

Faith Technologies

Faith Technologies started off its wellness program in its Wauwatosa kitchens. To help workers eat smarter while on the job, they replaced unhealthy vending machine items with complimentary oatmeal and tea and discounted fruit and Kashi bars. In addition to healthier eating, employees can participate in a wellness program that offers personalized coaching and tobacco cessation. On top of that, they can save on monthly health benefit payments by completing a free-of-charge health risk assessments (HRA) each year. The assessment includes cholesterol and glucose screenings and can save workers $3 to $25 each month on their health insurance payment.

Frett/Barrington Limited

Frett/Barrington Limited offers a unique wellness program called the turn-key kit that simplifies installation and execution of the program and its initiatives. They also provide key resource information on multiple health issues. Frett/Barrington is especially proud that its leaders lead by example and encourage healthy lifestyle changes throughout every level of the company.

Greendale School District

The Greendale School District’s wellness program is in its fifth year, and the district reports it has seen visible success by lowering the risk factors of employees. When the project began, 72.8 percent of employees were in the “low-risk factor” category for health insurance, and just five years later, that number has grown to 81.5 percent. Some of the wellness programs include an on-site nurse practitioner, on-site exercise clubs, local area health club discounts, health fairs, flu shots, an ergonomics program and a discount on health insurance premiums. Greendale employees also can complete full health screenings that include the full lipid panel for maximum prevention.

GE Healthcare Financial Services

GE Healthcare Financial Services launched its worksite wellness initiative in 2008, and in just over a year, the changes can already been seen and felt at its facilities in Brookfield. The wellness program is led by four individuals to learn and improve in the areas of diet/nutrition, exercise/fitness, smoking cessation and disease prevention. As part of the initiative, workers converted an empty office to a Health Worksite Office, which has information materials, motivational posters, a scale and blood pressure monitor. The cafeteria felt the change, as well, and now provides healthy options and nutritional info for meals. Employees of GE can also attend their Health Fair each May, with more than 50 vendors that offer chair massages, acupuncture and cholesterol, blood pressure and bone density screenings.

Johnson Health Tech North America

Employees of Johnston Health Tech America and their families can work out around the clock, thanks to a state-of-the-art fitness center recently built right on-site. As part of the “Fit Club Program,” for every 30 minutes they work out there, employees can earn “Fit Points,” which can be used to purchase wellness related items such as iPods, chair massages, personal training sessions, fitness equipment and gift cards to sporting goods stores or spas. Also available on-site are flu shots, nutrition and tobacco cessation seminars and yoga and Tae-Kwon Do classes. To encourage healthy eating, the Cottage Grove company sponsors “healthy eating days” or healthy potlucks, where employees bring a healthy dish and the recipe to share.

Johnsonville Sausage, LLC

Johnsonville Sausage employees don’t have to go too far from work for their workout or basic health treatment. The company recently opened a free clinic and a state-of-the-art fitness center minutes away from the main Johnsonville campus. The center, open to all insured employees and their dependents, offers preventative health screenings, prescription medications, lab and diagnostic services, personal training and physical therapy and wellness information. In addition, Johnsonville challenges its employees to contests such as a “Survivor Fitness Program” where contestants are given a new challenge every week.  Employees who would rather work out at home can buy fitness equipment through an interest-free loan from the company. 

Masters Gallery Foods Inc.

In their sixth year of wellness initiatives, Master Gallery Foods has done all kinds of activities that encourage healthy lifestyles. The Plymouth company’s program started with Health Risk Assessments and has grown to include having brown bag lunch topics related to health, a “Biggest Loser” weight loss competition, corporate yoga classes, free smoking cessation classes, a summer fitness program, fitness center subsidies and an annual employee health fair. In July of 2007 they opened their Center for Health & Wellness, a free health and wellness facility for free primary care needs, physical therapy, work hardening, annual exams, weight management and health and wellness related services

MSI General Corp.

When MSI General began its wellness initiative, the Oconomowoc company wanted to make sure there was strong leadership in place. So, the “Leadership Team” was created to lead by example and encourage all employees to take part in living healthier. They started by creating a  fitness room at a very minimal cost since the equipment and time were almost entirely donated from employees. MSI also holds a health fair once a year where workers can receive a confidential health assessment. During the holiday season, MSI holds the “Holiday Wellness Challenge” to help employees make smart decisions when there are more opportunities to make unhealthy ones. Incentives for participants of the challenges include gift certificates for health and fitness retailers and extended vacations. The hard work has paid off, since MSI was recently named a Gold Star Fit-Friendly Company by the American Heart Association.

Paul Davis Restoration

Even before wellness programs were popular, Paul Davis Restoration of Milwaukee believed that “health has a direct correlation with employees well-being and productivity.” The company has long offered Health Risk Assessments (HRAs) that include blood pressure screenings and sponsor ‘lunch and learn’ sessions on topics related to health such as nutrition and stress. In the office kitchen, fresh fruit and other healthy snacks have started to replace the typically unhealthy foods found in the office vending machines. Programs to keep employees active include weekly stretching sessions, a pedometer walking program and a weight loss challenge.

QPS Companies Inc.

QPS Companies is located near a Brookfield subdivision, so to promote exercise the company mapped out walking trails nearby for workers to enjoy during before or after work, or during their lunch hours. They also posted signs by elevator and stairs that have stats about how many calories you burn by walking stairs, and how many years it can add to your life. A wellness committee was formed to ensure that the exercise was combined with healthy eating habits, and now they provide healthy snack cabinets in the break room. Options include calorie-friendly frozen meals, baked chips and 100-calorie cookies that are available to purchase. The proceeds from the sales of purchasing snacks go towards rewards for winners of fitness challenges.

R&R Insurance Services

R&R Insurance Services likes keeping its workers active, so for employees of the Menomonee Falls office, they provide a walking map of the nearby area so workers can keep fit during their lunch hour or before or after work. In addition, the company offers smoking cessation programs, corporate discounts or reimbursements for gym memberships, Weight Watchers reimbursement and info forums where employees can receive tips on healthy lifestyles. R&R also works with UNUM for a Work Life Balance Employee Assistance Program.

The Starr Group

It’s only the best for The Starr Group – the company’s Best of the Best Committee focuses on improving the balance between the personal and professional lives of employees. The Greenfield company sponsors two wellness campaigns per year that focus on the combination of proper nutrition along with exercise. The campaigns have fitness goals, health lunches, tobacco cessation and a stress focus that includes in-house chair massages. The company usually sees 80- to 100-percent participation and vice president Mary Starr says she’s seen a visible increase in health awareness and says employees are always asking what’s next on the wellness agenda. As a bonus, The Starr Group is able to do most of their programs at a low cost because many are put together by their own employees

West Bend Mutual Insurance Company

Everyone is up for a challenge at West Bend Mutual Insurance Company. For their corporate challenge event, employees divided into teams of three males and three females for a battle of strength, quickness, agility and trivia. The winning team won fitness and wellness prizes. Another day is the ‘Steiner Stomp,’ where employees walk on prairie trails led by chief executive officer Kevin Steiner. When there’s not a challenge going on, employees can work out at their state-of-the-art fitness center open around the clock that offers over 15 group exercise classes each week. Employees also have the option of completing a health risk assessment once a year to save $130 annually in their health insurance premium.