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Study Shows Declining Health
Whether they want to or not, employers play a large role in the health of their employees. Recent study findings argue that organizations must expand that role to prevent declines in the health of American workers. But even organizations that pursue such aims have trouble getting buy-in from employees, experts say.
As the healthcare-reform debate continues and the recession lingers on, with only hints of a recovery on the way, new data from the Families and Work Institute shows that the health of employed American workers is trending downward. "The State of Health in the American Workforce," a report based on data from FWI's 2008 National Study of the Changing Workforce, shows that only 28 percent of employees today report that their overall health is "excellent," down from 34 percent just six years ago. The data also shows that men's overall health has declined more rapidly than women's and that nearly half of U.S. employees (49 percent) have not engaged in regular physical exercise in the last 30 days (from when the poll was taken), including 22 percent who have not engaged in any rigorous physical exercise. What's more, despite a push to stop smoking at the workplace, one in four smokes. In terms of healthcare coverage, one-quarter (24 percent) of low-income employees have no insurance from their employers or any other source, compared with only 5 percent of middle- and high-income employees. Low-income employees are also much less likely to receive at least five paid sick days -- only 46 percent do compared with 66 percent of middle- and high-income workers. "Few would disagree that the healthcare path we are on represents an untenable route to increasing costs and diminishing returns," says Ellen Galinsky, co-founder and president of FWI. "This new report is replete with evidence that several key measures of employee health are declining ... ." Other key findings include: * Mental health has remained stable over the past six years, but a large proportion of the workforce (one in three) show signs of clinical depression; * Sleep problems are pervasive, with one in five employees reporting trouble falling asleep, and one-third (31 percent) awakening too early and having trouble falling back to sleep; * Stress levels are rising, with four in 10 employees reporting experiencing three or more indicators of stress sometimes, often or very often; and * Twenty-one percent are receiving treatment for high blood pressure and 14 percent are being treated for high cholesterol. As to whether workplaces can make a difference for employee health and well-being, the data suggest that the answer is "yes." For example, FWI finds that 38 percent of employees in workplaces that fall into the "high overall effectiveness" category (based on six measurable criteria that include economic security, autonomy and work/life fit) report "excellent overall health." By contrast, only 19 percent of employees in workplaces that fall into the "low overall effectiveness" category report "excellent overall health." "The message is clear that beyond any reform measures on the table in Washington, it is urgent for employers and employees to pay attention to how they can promote better health, which ultimately will save money," Galinsky says. As the authors of the report write, "the United States has a system in which healthcare promotion and protection are the purview of employers. Whether or how much this role begins to shift, our findings argue convincingly that employers must consider another role beyond providing healthcare insurance and wellness programs. "The work environment -- where each of us spends most of our waking hours -- has a considerable impact on our health and well-being," they write. "Improving the work environment is a low- to no-cost investment that every employer should make if we are truly to reform healthcare, reduce spiraling healthcare expenditures and actually improve health in America." One of the biggest stumbling blocks on the road to overall national health exists in the small-business community, where wellness and employee health programs are in decline, says LuAnn Heinen, vice president of the Washington-based National Business Group on Health. "Large employers clearly grasp the connection between employee health and well-being on the one hand, and health-plan costs and employee productivity on the other," she says, "[however] there is a great disparity between large and small companies. Health-reform legislation needs to address this by allowing more significant incentives for employee health and wellness, as well as tax benefits, especially for small employers." Changes are also needed in ways to bring those who need help the most into the wellness arena, says NBGH President Helen Darling. "Employers are reporting that one of their biggest problems is getting employee engagement in the programs they offer," Darling says. "In many instances, employees -- and often also adult dependents -- are offered extra incentives to participate in programs that will benefit them, but still, employees do not participate."
October 14, 2009 Copyright 2009© LRP Publications |
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