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Live Long and Prosper

The familiar saying, “Without your health, you are nothing,” is ringing true for many during tough economic times, and companies across the country are finding healthy employees are happier. Employers, recent reports reveal, are turning to wellness programs to promote healthier lifestyles, and both employees and companies are reaping the benefits.

“The most important thing for people to know is that they are respected and cared for,” says Rocky Roemer, president of Roemer Insurance, in an Aug. 16 article in the online newspaper, the Toledo Blade. “If you help people to be the healthiest they can be, there will be lower costs on insurance and greater profitability for the company.”

More companies are funding wellness programs, which range from paying employees to quit smoking to picking up the tab for gym memberships. Some have installed blood pressure machines in their terminals so their drivers can easily monitor their BP for free. According to an Aug. 31 article in the Orlando Business Journal, firms are covering such costs with the aim of lowering health care costs and improving worker productivity.

Are trucking companies behind the curve on this one? In 2007, the Transportation Research Board published a lengthy report on Health and Wellness Programs for Commercial Drivers. The report observed that what’s needed is a cultural change: a deliberate shift by the transportation industry toward integrating new models of health, safety and productivity in a partnership that involves drivers, managers and transport company management.

According to the report, trucking companies interested in developing employee health and wellness programs are still very much in need of guidance and resources on “how to do it.” The resources and tools are out there. Meanwhile, the ranks of those getting on board the wellness train are growing, and employees and the bottom line are better for it.

Source: Roemer Report. Used with permission.