WorkSafeBC is just like any other employer, in that it has a health and safety policy, which, by law, follows Occupational Health and Safety regulations. However, Valerie Molloy, senior manager, safety, health and wellness, with WorkSafeBC, says the organization goes beyond its legal obligations when it comes to focusing on employee safety, health and wellness.
“Wellness isn’t necessarily covered under the regulations,” she says, “but it’s something that we feel is important as a good employer.”
One employee at a time
WorkSafeBC’s focus on wellness began in 2005. At that time, the organization had a new CEO, a new board of directors and a new strategic plan. “We wanted to align [our activities] with that strategic plan,” says Molloy, “and a key part of that plan was focused on making a difference one human being at a time with our customers.”
WorkSafeBC recognized that since its 3,000 employees (ranging in age from their mid-20s to mid-60s) were providing that customer service to the province’s residents, the organization’s commitment to its staff should also be focused on making a difference one employee at a time. “We needed people who were knowledgeable, engaged, flexible, productive and obviously at work, so being healthy is important,” explains Molloy.
“Our goal in terms of looking at our wellness program is really to educate and empower our employees and make it convenient for them to take care of their health,” she says. To begin, the organization looked at the key health risk indicators among its employee base—this was done by reviewing sick leave, long- term disability, the employee and family assistance program (EFAP), the health screening clinic data and the extended health information. WorkSafeBC also noted that it has an aging workforce, (the average employee age is 48), it is predominantly female, many of the jobs are sedentary, and many of the employees are dealing with lifestyle diseases. The organization offers a health screening clinic (measuring weight, height, body mass index, blood sugar, blood pressure, waist circumference and cholesterol) on-site. “It’s an opportunity for employees to get to know their numbers, which might indicate some health risks for them,” she says.
In the fall, WorkSafeBC runs a campaign around influenza and offers an on-site flu shot clinic at all of its offices. Since 2010, it has also been offering a mammography clinic, which has been hugely popular, prompting a move from
a one-day clinic annually to two or three days. “It was the first time for a number of women who had never gone [for a mammogram] just because it wasn’t convenient. Making it convenient—taking your break and having it done—was huge,” says Molloy.
These three clinics are offered annually on-site at WorkSafeBC’s head office in Richmond, B.C.
The organization also promotes the use of its EFAP and the services it offers. For example, WorkSafeBC can arrange one-on-one sessions on-site for employees who need or want the services of a registered dietitian.
There are lunch-and-learn sessions (typically three or four a year) on health-related topics. One recently focused on colon cancer, involving a blow-up colon (courtesy of the Colorectal Cancer Association of Canada). Dr. Peter Rothfels, WorkSafeBC’s chief medical advisor, talked about colon cancer and the risks and the importance of screening, and employees got to tour the colon. “It was like a bouncy castle but less fun,” Molloy jokes.
Molloy says WorkSafeBC really hasn’t faced many challenges in implementing its wellness program. “We had support of our senior executives, and engaging employees was really easy because we based our program on the health risk factors, so we really created that piece of ‘what’s in it for me’ based on what we knew was going on with our employees from a health perspective.”
However, she does note that the program was an opportunity for WorkSafeBC to ensure that its front-line managers were engaged with what it was offering and why. The organization understood the need to support managers, ensure that they were aware of the initiatives and support employee participation in safety, health and wellness activities. “After all,” says Molloy, “the day-in day-out interaction with one’s managers is key to a healthy workplace.”
The results are in
Because WorkSafeBC looks to “win the hearts and minds” of its employees in making a difference one human being at a time, employee engagement was critical for the organization as a measure of the program’s success. The most recent employee survey showed an engagement rate of 73%, with the section devoted to health, safety and wellness showing particularly strong results, says Molloy.
But it’s the anecdotal stories from employees that makes Molloy see the program really come to life. She recalls an employee who lost 50 pounds after participating in the organization’s wellness initiatives for several years. Another woman, who returned to work after a cancer scare, was very concerned about work/life balance. “She was really thankful for having the program for her to manage that work/life balance and stress piece,” says Molloy, adding that the program in general helped remind her to take care of her health by eating healthy and taking time to exercise.
Other employees have said, in their words, that they were really couch potatoes, but—as a result of participating in the wellness program—they are actively participating in a fitness program or running races.
As for the numbers, WorkSafeBC has reduced its average sick leave by one day, and it has also reduced its average duration of its long-term disability psychological claims by a month and a half.
Down the road
Later this year, explains Molloy, WorkSafeBC plans to focus its wellness program on sleep with a challenge called Count Your Zzz’s. “[Sleep] really is the most under-appreciated health tool that we have.” (Insufficient sleep has been linked to health issues such as weight gain and increased risk of Type 2 diabetes, as well as lack of productivity in the workplace.)
After seven years of running its wellness program, WorkSafeBC has really begun to see improvements in its employees’ understanding of wellness and has noticed behavioural change that can be attributed to the program. This year, it’s implementing an online health risk assessment tool. “It’s going to give personalized feedback to employees about their specific and personal health risks, and it will drive them to certain supports that are available for them to make their individual changes based on their own individual health risks.” One employee at a time, indeed.
Brooke Smith is managing editor of Benefits Canada. brooke.smith@rci.rogers.com