Thanks to the fast paced, stressful life, fitness has become a major concern for everybody these days. Right from individuals to organizations. Its really important for organization to ensure its employees are in the best of their fitness to ensure projects do not fall prey to sick leaves. The responsibility is on the Human Resource team to ensure the fitness of the workforce is at its peak.
Typically, every organizations Human Resource team has formulated some kind of Medical Bills Reimbursement and Medical Insurance policy for its employees. In some places, there is visiting doctor also in the office. Certain multinationals have gone one step forward by having safety guidelines which every employee has to adhere to. Failure to adherence results in disciplinary action.
The reason for the birth of this article
I feel, these are quite good HR initiatives but to some extent all these efforts and initiatives are reactive in nature and mostly remain on papers filling the store room.
The HR initiative should be such that it provokes the sense of being fit and healthy in employees from within, the initiative should be innovative enough to catch the amusement of employees and thus trigger them to be fit, the initiative need not be circulated in papers to every employee, rather it should be engraved in their minds and their routines. So is there something which can cater to this requirements? Yes, I feel I have an idea of one such initiative and is explained in the following paragraphs..
The Fit Employee Recognition Program
The idea is based on simple and known fact that Efforts should be recognized and rewarded. I suggest starting a “Employee Fitness Recognition program”. The aim of the program would be to recognize the fit employee(s) and call them Mr/Ms.OrganiazationName or whatever you like.
A visiting doctor would examine the employees and certify their fitness level. The rewarded employees are asked to share their secret of fitness. A dashboard at suitable areas frequently visited by employees like Canteen will have photographs of the rewarded employees, thus creating the visual triggers. Live examples and that too of peers will have much deeper impact on the work force I feel. The core idea is to have a HR program which is psychologically relevant and impacting, a HR initiative which will instil the fitness mantra in the employees.
Program customized to meet Specific goals
The program should be flavoured based on the goals of the initiative. For example, the program could be used to target the senior employees who are more prone to illness by having a Band/Grade wise reward program. Another flavour of the program could be based on categorization of employees into age group to ensure people at different levels of ages are fit and are suitably recognized and rewarded. The permutation and combinations are end less.
Benefits of the Programs
This particular HR initiative will have following benefits
- The program is more engaging then having simple policies.
- It will instil a sense of competition and inspiration in employees to be fit.
- The rewarded employees will feel inspired to keep going with their fitness routine.
- Quantum of work hampered due to sick leaves is reduced
- Increase in efficiency of people as they are more fit and healthy.
What happens to existing stuff
This program should be run along with the traditional health related policies.
What say guys…Have I got a fit and healthy Idea?
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