May is Global Employee Health and Fitness Month! With rising healthcare premiums and shrinking coverage, everyone wants to stay as healthy as possible. Dedicate this month to changing your health behavior. This is the perfect opportunity to make a collective change together with your colleagues and work on improving health as a company community.

Previously National Employee Health & Fitness Day, this program was expanded into a month long global outreach because healthy behavior takes time to develop into lifestyle habits. Truly committing to a month-long initiative of healthy choices can turn into a lifelong commitment to health.

Some companies have expressed concerns about whether or not wellness programs truly work. After all, these programs are dependent on what the employee makes of it. Encouraging company-wide participation in Global Employee Health and Fitness Month can be the boost your employees need to begin taking advantage of wellness offerings at your company.

Employees with healthy lifestyles can benefit your company in many ways, all of which can positively impact your bottom line:

  • Lower claims costs for the employer and employee to pay
  • Less absenteeism and presenteeism
  • More productive and alert employees
  • Higher employee retention

To learn more about Global Employee Health and Fitness Month and how you can get your company involved, visit http://www.healthandfitnessmonth.com/about. Download a toolkit and guidelines you can use to promote the initiative at your company.

Sources:
“About.” Global Employee Health and Fitness Month.
“Do Corporate Wellness Programs Really Work?” Live Plan. 
“5 Hallmarks of Successful Corporate Wellness Programs.” Fortune.