Survey finds sedentary lifestyle at work damaging health
Posted October 28, 2013 7:34 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
A survey of 400 Canadian employers has found the sedentary nature of our workplaces is damaging to our health.
According to the Sun Life Financial survey, 24 percent of the employers polled are now considering work-related stress and sedentary lifestyles to be the most serious health risks affecting their employees.
“Sedentary lifestyle or inactive lifestyle as it relates to the time spent at work, but also time outside of work,” said Lori Casselman with Health and Wellness for Sun Life Financial.
“So this is the first time in over a decade of actually doing this survey, that sedentary lifestyle’s are showing up right up there as a high concern right along with stress.”
Almost all businesses reported “casual absences, higher turn over and also higher costs on the health plan,” were affecting their bottom line.
Companies that offer wellness programs to their employees, such as on-site fitness and nutrition or stress management education, report an increase in employee morale.
“Employee assistance programs, so access to psychologists for personal support, education programs, screening clinics — screening for things like blood pressure and cholesterol levels.”
According to Casselman, employers are looking at positive stress management options like email management.
“So if an individual really spends the time in the evening managing their email and that’s what works best for them because perhaps they have to leave work earlier in the day,” she explained.
Casselman says employers are offering options to help employees.
“Flexible work schedules where possible, work from home or tele-work options.”
