It’s common knowledge that the number of work related injuries is rising.
While many traditional injuries happen while working high risk jobs, the majority of injuries are now happening to employees who sit for long periods of time. As many employees sit at a computer for a long period of time, they are at risk. Let’s face it, healthy employees are better for your business.
Here are five tips you can pass on to your employees to ensure they stay happy and healthy.
Walk it off, stretch it out Many employees will often sit at their desk for hours at a time, only getting up to go for lunch, or for bathroom breaks. It’s a good idea to be getting up out of your desk at least once an hour. Encourage your employees to walk to each other’s office or desk if they need to chat instead of using instant messaging. Put up posters showing leg, neck, shoulder and back stretches and actively encourage employees to stretch before they start work and at least once an hour.
May as well go for a walk Another way to get employees more mobile is to make your meetings mobile. If it’s a nice day out, why not walk around the block as a group, or walk to the park and have a brainstorming session. As many employees and businesses use tablets or some form of mobile computing, it’s not hard to take the office with you, and work while you exercise.
H2O It’s important to stay hydrated, even while in the office. Many employees who complain of headaches or being lightheaded and dizzy may actually be dehydrated – they should be drinking at least 4 big glasses a day. These problems can be easily avoided by providing your employees with water. Put a water cooler in a central location, that all employees can walk to. This serves another purpose, as it also forces employees to get up and take a break.
Offer healthy snacks As many employees are working longer hours compared with even 10 years ago, your employees could be neglecting their diet. Having a vending machine with salty chips or sweet sodas isn’t helping. Instead, opt to stock low sugar drinks and healthy snacks like fruit. While this may cost more upfront, the long term savings in less sick days will more than pay for the investment in the long run.
Change the commute This can be one of the hardest changes to implement, but has positive benefits. Encourage your employees to ride their bikes or walk to the office, or implement some form of exercise within their commute. Be sure that if you do this, you have facilities where employees can change and take a shower – necessary if your business is in a warmer climate or weather is prone to change without notice.
Healthy and happy employees will go a long way in ensuring your company is operating at maximum efficiency. Beyond that, you’ll see a decrease in lost time and a potential increase in overall value of your business. If you’d like to learn more ways to increase your company’s value, please contact us.
