Full commitment to health

Workplace health promotion gains significance

Workloads are becoming heavier in many branches of industry. Employees are expected to be more flexible, produce higher quality work, and show a willingness for professional development. Increasing pressure to perform on top of physical job-related stresses can jeopardize the health of a workforce. For that reason, it’s good that an increasing number of businesses are recognizing how healthy, motivated workers improve the potential of the company and indirectly counteract skills shortages. 2011 saw the start of a workplace health promotion project in the greater Berlin-Brandenburg area. The project was carried out in collaboration with the Steinbeis Consulting Center for Health Management. It was designed to answer questions asked by many businesses: how do we keep our employees physically and mentally active? And how do we keep them healthy and motivated?

The most important aim of the project was to limit work- and age-related health risk factors from daily work life, and reduce the costs of work absences caused by poor health and accidents. An employee’s capacity to work should be secured for the long term. This can be achieved through preventative measures such as back stabilizing exercises, movement analysis and coaching, workshops for stress prevention and other similar activities.

The Steinbeis team established six steps in their introduction of behavioral training (preventative behavior):

  1. An informational kick-off event for everyone involved
  2. Movement analysis conducted by trained experts
  3. Evaluation of the movement analysis based on standards in sports science
  4. Development of action plans for improving back health
  5. Interactive instruction of employees with movement coaching for preventative actions that improve back health
  6. Additional work for senior management (run in parallel): workshop for stress prevention, sensitization to occupational safety and health protection

After the kick-off event, the team started by analyzing the movement patterns in the administrative departments of the participating companies. This analysis included recording the sitting position of each employee, in addition to the positioning of the feet and back. Employees were interviewed with questions like: “which muscle groups do you use most?“ or “what types of tasks does your job require, and how do you carry yourself at work?“ In the end, they were given helpful hints regarding movement in the workplace. The goal was to teach employees how to incorporate the right kind of healthy movement at work because healthy daily workflows contribute to balanced physical and mental activity. The results of the consultation were presented to each employee in the form of a coaching sheet on “dynamic sitting,” which is tailored to the needs of each participant.

After the movement analyses was successfully underway, the Berlinbased health experts turned their sights on stress and stress management. During a stress workshop that lasted several hours, the experts helped managers investigate the term “stress” and address its causes and effects. This was followed by a consultation on how to best manage high stress levels. High work performance is in demand more than ever before, and most people react negatively to long working hours, a hectic work environment, jumping back and forth between various tasks, and attempts at completing as many tasks as possible. The employees learned how to deal with, reduce, or even eliminate stress in the workplace. Afterward, they discussed a bonus or award system backed by external supporters.

The success of actions taken to contribute to workplace health promotion is not achieved after a metaphorical sprint. Marathon thinking is required to see these measures truly work. Persistence is required to solve problems that have developed over many years. A series of carefully considered and coordinated steps must be taken, and the ultimate success of taking those steps is not always predictable. But companies are sure to reach the conclusion that it pays over the medium term to actively invest in their employees’ capacity to work, rather than carry the high costs of diminished performance and workplace absence.

The Steinbeis Consulting Center for Health Management carries out qualified analyses and develops customized solutions for workplace health management. The center views itself as the link between occupational and health protection and company health management.

Contact

Kristin Herold | Dr. Michael Meetz
Steinbeis Consulting Center for Health Management (Berlin)

Anke Linz
uve GmbH für Managementberatung (Berlin)
a.linz@uve.de

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