Counting On Good Health

In today's fast-paced business world, your company can't afford down-time. Many of today's businesses invest substantial time, money and effort to ensure their technological systems and facilities won't let them down. Smart companies make the same investment in employee health. Healthy employees constitute more effective employees - they possess positive attitudes and are better able to maintain the stamina required to help their companies keep up in a global economy. Your employees are your firm's most valuable asset. Protecting their health will vastly impact your company's work environment and bottom line.

Employee absenteeism is rising to record levels, and the price companies pay for unscheduled absences is accelerating as well. Depending on your company's size, your firm may be losing anywhere from $300 to $1,000 annually per employee due to absenteeism, according to federal statistics. For large companies, such significant dollar amounts can quickly add up and affect every facet of a business and its productivity. For small businesses, such losses are virtually unsustainable if they are widespread and recurrent.

Employee illness and its related costs have become a substantial expense for most employers. Sick days and extended illnesses, and higher insurance premiums and employee replacement in the form of temporary and permanent workers are among the hard costs businesses endure when their employees are unhealthy. Also lost are potential opportunities for growth, as a workforce incapable of operating at optimum levels is less likely to contribute to effectively expanding its company.

The cost of employee absenteeism due to health issues isn't confined to lost productivity on the part of the ill worker. It also affects other employees. Contagious illnesses, such as the flu, can paralyze any workforce. Employees who avoid health problems often must fulfill the duties of those who are absent, thus hindering overall productivity and damaging morale. Moreover, the company's clients may receive less attentive service, and that can hurt a firm's long-term success.