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Workplace Wellness

Sick employees and family members mean absenteeism and lower productivity. The average worker misses up to 1.5 days a year because of colds and flu.¹

Here are some strategies to keep your workers healthy and maintain productivity.

1. Make a plan. Take actions to decrease the spread of seasonal and H1N1 flu in your workplace and to help maintain business continuity.  For guidance, see the CDC’s publication Preparing for the Flu.    
2. Encourage employees to practice good hygiene. Promote hand washing and discourage contact with sick workers. Keep frequently touched common surfaces (doorknobs, phones, keyboards, office equipment) clean with disinfectant wipes.
3. Create awareness. Send an e-mail message with prevention tips to your employees. Post on your Intranet page and public areas of your company (e.g. cafeterias and breakrooms, at the printer or fax machine, bathrooms.) Or make handouts available.
4. Offer flu shots in the workplace. Make arrangements with a health care provider, pharmacy, or health agency to provide the shots. Iowa businesses can schedule a worksite flu clinic through Visiting Nurse Services.²  Log in to Wellmark to review Wellness Station: Stick it to the Flu  for information on conducting a flu shot clinic.
5. Refer employees to local resources. If offering flu shots at your worksite is not an option, provide employees information on credible providers who are offering them. Find flu shot clinics on the Wellness Calendar. 
6. Keep sick workers home. One of the best ways to reduce the spread of influenza is to keep sick people away from well people. The CDC recommends workers with flu-like illness are recommended to stay home and not come to work until at least 24 hours after their fever has resolved. Plan to allow and encourage sick workers to stay home without reprisals.
7. Allow flexible work practices. Let workers telecommute, if possible, so they can stay home with sick family members or care for their children if schools close. Plan to use practices such as teleconferences to minimize face-to-face contact between workers if recommended by local health officials.
8. Log on to the Employer Toolkit for free worksite materials. Download or order free cold and flu season communication materials, such as prevention tips or posters.

1. U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.

2. Visiting Nurse Services is an independent entity not under the control or direction of Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield and is not affiliated with Wellmark or its subsidiaries.