The Stats
Canadian workers stressed out
A recent survey by global recruitment firm Kelly Services reveals that Canadian workers are the second-most stressed-out group in the world—just behind Japanese employees.
Workers around the world experience job stress differently:
19% said their job was adversely affecting their health
13% were losing sleep over their jobs
33% had taken three or more days of sick leave in the past year
35% were made to feel guilty about taking that sick leave
15% admitted to taking sick leave when they weren’t actually sick
Is Canada ready for a universal drug plan?
A universal public pharmacare program should be part of Canada’s healthcare system, according to a recent report by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
The report claims that rising drug costs are greatly affecting Canadians’ pocketbooks, pushing many to the verge of bankruptcy, and prompting others to leave prescriptions unfilled—a financial decision that could cost them their health. While some drugs are covered by provincial systems and private insurance, that coverage varies from province to province and plan to plan. In fact, only half of the population is covered by a workplace drug plan.
A universal pharmacare program would make lifesaving drugs more accessible to the entire Canadian population, the report notes. By buying in bulk, the government would be able to negotiate better prices for medications and keep costs down. “Pharmacare would not only improve access to necessary drugs, but would reduce costs through a more efficient and controlled system,” it states.
Engaged employees are happy employees
A new University of Alberta study—which implemented a “Spirit at Work” program designed to engage employees and give a sense of purpose—showed that simply urging employees to remember what they love about their jobs was enough to:
Hot Topic
Manulife takes on mental illness
With the costs of mental illness in the billions of dollars per year, big businesses and government must work together to shoulder the price tag. That kind of thinking prompted Manulife Canada’s recent $500,000 donation to Nova Scotia’s early mental illness intervention programs and community-focused living residences.
“Manulife’s investment will play a part in helping us achieve our vision of making sure the people of Nova Scotia are healthy, especially our youngest Nova Scotians,” said Nova Scotia Premier Rodney MacDonald. “This is so much more than treating illness. It’s about making healthy lifestyles a lifelong commitment for people, providing support for those who need it, and changing the circumstances that cause so much harm.”
Sources: Is Canada Ready?—”Life Before Pharmacare: Report on the Canadian Health Coalition’s Hearings into a Universal Drug Plan,” Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, December 2008. Engaged Employees—”The Promise of Spirit at Work: Increasing Job Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment and Reducing Turnover and Absenteeism in Long-Term Care,” Journal of Gerontological Nursing, October 2008. Manulife—Manulife Financial Corp. Stress—Kelly Global Workforce Survey, December, 2008.
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© Copyright 2009 Rogers Publishing Ltd. This article first appeared in the January/Feburary 2009 edition of WORKING WELL magazine.