June is National Employee Wellness Month. It is a month that encourages employers to focus on enhancing existing employee wellness programs while encouraging employees to implement strategies to improve their overall well-being. This doesn’t mean that employee wellness shouldn’t be prioritized the other eleven months of the year, however, this month seeks to shed additional light on the importance of employee health and wellness.
In a study published in the Journal of Occupational Health, research showed that 69 million workers reported missing work days due to illness. Furthermore, the CDC states that annually, productivity losses due to personal or family health problems costs U.S. employers 225.8 billion dollars. Employee wellness programs can, and have been shown to improve physical health, save on health care costs, improve productivity and create a culture of health in the workplace that fosters a sense of camaraderie and community among employees.
According to the National Wellness Institute, most well rounded employee wellness programs address the 6 key components of well-being: occupational, physical, social, intellectual, spiritual and emotional.