Beat worker burnout
PUBLISHED : 02 Jun 2011 05:01:00 | Emily Chantiri
Brain refresher: An onsite gym can help workers be more effective.
A typical day in the office for workers is a sedentary one: drive to work, pick up a coffee on the way to the desk and then settle down for what could be several hours without moving.
It’s a recipe for health problems later in life and also feeds into poor productivity levels as employees get stagnant from long periods of time looking at a screen.
The answer, as employers know, is to get employees off their bums and more active at work. The problem is how to make them do it.
It takes commitment from corporate leaders to have a more active workforce – at least so says Adam Trottman, project officer for recreation and sport with the South Australian government.
For Trottman organisational culture plays an important role in supporting an active workforce and he says it’s important for chief executives and business leaders to recognise the benefits physical activity can bring to the workplace and to support it in any way they can.
“One of the perceived barriers to providing a workplace supportive of physical activity is cost,” he tells BRW. “But there are many low-cost options that workplaces can adopt from encouraging walking meetings, lunchtime walking groups and installing bike storage to simply opening up access to stairs.”
Trottman is part of a group at the South Australian government that launched Be Active in 2008.
Its aim was to assist businesses to deliver healthy living programs at work and its success has fed into the federal government’s Healthy Workers Initiative which begins on July 1.
“Be Active has been positive,” says Trottman. “Workplaces want their employees to be healthy at work and home because it reduces absenteeism and presenteeism – people who come into work when they are still sick.”
He says companies that have taken this initiative have reported more staff retention and that it has increased creativity and innovation because staff are more alert and switched on through the day.
Citi gets physical
| Emily ChantiriBanking services provider Citibank has implemented a well-being strategy to encourage a healthy workplace. The bank’s head office in Sydney, where most of its 2000 workers are employed, has a gym that offers free classes such as Zumba, yoga and Pilates to staff. Employees at the bank’s smaller Melbourne office receive a discounted rate at a local gym and at Citibank’s Auckland office staff are given a pre-loaded gym card to be used on remedial services, gym memberships and other related services.
Dorota Kisiel , the head of compensation, benefits and mobility, Citi Australia, says the well-being strategy is aimed at all staff.
“The facilities are convenient, which means taking up these initiatives is easier,” she says. “The gym is open prior to and after working hours. We want to ensure all our staff have access to our well-being strategy, even in the smaller offices. The various departments within the company run informal gatherings such as fun runs and a marathon. They use the gym to train.”
Citibank employee Marnie Jurkowski is a regular at the bank’s gym, which she uses as much as four times a week.
“It’s very convenient. I am a working mum with two young children. If I come in early, I can use the gym and shower prior to work. It’s very social and it is great for networking, particularly with the other divisions of the bank. I need to exercise to feel good about myself and to function. If I don’t exercise I feel lethargic, and I’m unable to work as efficiently or productively.”
Ten steps to a healthy workplace
| Emily Chantiri01Display motivational or informative posters, signage or brochures about the benefits of physical activity and some tips on getting active.
02Promote and encourage employees to use the stairs. Use the “footprint” stickers to guide people to the stairs rather than walking straight to the lifts.
03Promote “walking meetings”, lunchtime walks and five to 10-minute walk breaks during the day.
04Provide bicycle racks or alternative secure bicycle storage to encourage people to cycle to work.
05Provide information on local opportunities for physical activity.
06Publicise physical activity opportunities through email, company intranet or websites.
07Buy corporate memberships to local fitness centres. Offer attractive corporate packages that give employees reduced membership rates.
08Provide on-site facilities such as gyms if you are a large employer and showers and change rooms.
09Support sports and physical activity clubs such as social football and netball teams and walking and jogging groups.
10Encourage employees to form corporate teams for events.
BRW
Emily Chantiri
ReporterSydney
Emily Chantiri has been a personal finance writer for the past twelve years. Emily is the co-author of The Money Club which became a best seller. She is the author of four books on personal finance. Emily joined BRW in 2007 and has worked on several issues of the BRW Rich 200. Emily has written for a number of Australian magazine and was a regular columnist for the ABC's Life etc magazine.
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