News You Can Use: Employees hopping on the wellness bandwagon

Employees want to become healthier, and they are receptive to wellness programs offered by their employers. That’s the take-home message from the National Business Group on Health’s new survey.

As a result of employer communications about health and wellness, 43% of workers have made an effort to improve their overall health. For this type of communication, e-mail is the preferred format of 77% of employees. “They want more health care communications targeted to their interests,” says Helen Darling, president of NBGH. “Employees do value communications from their employer. ”

Other key findings include:
* 74% of employees are trying to adopt healthier lifestyles today in hopes of reducing future health care costs in retirement.
* 54% of workers say they would take advantage of health-related programs sponsored by their employer, union or health plan.
* 47% of employees say work demands prevent them from leading a healthier life.
* 34% of all employees would be very likely or extremely likely to participate in a stress management program if it was offered at work.

Darling notes, “The financial meltdown will make [wellness initiatives] more important. We know we need to do better.”

Overheard At: Keep Global Employees Engaged

Steve Watson of Staunton Chase International gives tips and suggestions on how to select and prepare employees for expat assignments. Plus, what to do when they return. See "Conducting Expat Profiling" in the October issue for more information.

News You Can't Use: Jealous of a "work spouse"? It's true.

It wasn't until several months into my first job that I heard the term "work spouse." Are you in the dark too? Do you know the co-worker (male or female) to whom you share your day-to-day gripes with? Spend your lunch date with, and discuss your kids? Yep, he or she is your "work spouse."

And it turns out that a new CareerBuilder.com survey finds that one in ten workers feel as if they have one, and among those workers who are married, 20% of spouses and significant others feel jealous. Seventeen percent even said they had to compromise something at the office to protect their work spouse.

Wow.

Now for some lighthearted info. The same 6,000 people surveyed were asked to identify their favorite platonic TV work couples. Here are their answers:

  1. Regis and Kelly

2. David Letterman and Paul Shaffer

3. Jay Leno and Kevin Eubanks

4. Meredith Vieira and Matt Lauer

5. Howard Stern and Robin Quivers

6. Judge Judy and Petri Byrd

7. Conan O'Brien and Max Weinberg

8. The Ladies of The View

9. Diane Sawyer and Chris Cuomo

10. Jimmy Kimmel and Guillermo Diaz

11. Harry Smith and Julie Chen

12. Billy Bush and Nancy O'Dell


Survey Methodology

This survey was conducted online within the U.S. by Harris Interactive(R) on behalf of CareerBuilder.com among 6,194 employees (employed full-time; not self-employed) between August 21 and September 9, 2008. Percentages for some questions are based on a subset of responses to certain questions. With a pure probability sample of 6,194 one could say with a 95 percent probability that the overall results have a sampling error of +/- 1.25 percentage points. Sampling error for data from sub-samples is higher and varies.

Tip of the Day: (For Employees) How to communicate better with your boss

In honor of National Boss Day (today) we have three tips on effective communication from consulting firm Adecco. In keeping with our larger theme of more frequent communications from HR, distribute these to your employees with a short note about National Boss Day.

  1. Be transparent: Keeping an open and honest line of communication
    between you and your manager is one of the best ways to create an
    effective working relationship. Discuss potential problems instead of
    waiting for actual problems to arise.
 2. Bosses are people too: When a personal relationship is non-existent,
    it's quite easy to forget that your boss is an employee just as you
    are. Many of the same stresses you experience at work are the same they
    experience as well. Connecting on a more personal level, like
    discussing a similar frustration or discussing the difficulties of
    achieving work/life balance, will create a culture of understanding
    that will ultimately provide a better working relationship.
 3. Respect their position: No matter how close you are with your boss,
    always respect their position and the job they have to do.  If personal
    and professional lines become blurred, it sets the stage for
    uncomfortable situations to arise that will negatively affect the
    relationship.

Overheard At: Battling Brain Drain

Sanjiv Kumar, a principal and managing director at Buck Consultants gives tips about how to retain older workers, address the aging workforce challenges head-on and preserve the knowledge that your company needs before it gets lost when older workers retire.

Tip of the Day

According to a new report by The Vision Council, "Vision Care: Focusing on the Workplace Benefit," two-thirds of Americans say they would be more willing to get an eye exam if they had some coverage, yet only 17% of employers report offering vision insurance. Vision benefits lag behind health and dental benefits, with as many as 44% of employers offering dental coverage.

News You Can Use: Employees need reassurance too

Working Americans are not hearing from senior leaders in their companies about the implications of the global financial crisis, according to new research released today by global public relations firm Weber Shandwick.

The survey of 514 employed Americans shows that 70% expect the current economic and financial problems in the U.S. will have a negative impact on the company they work for over the course of the next year. Of those, 26% believe their company will have to lay off employees and 62% said their company would have trouble meeting its goals.

The research highlights a clear deficit in the workplace between employee appetite for more communication on the impact of the economic crisis and the levels at which company leadership is providing information. The research shows that 71% of people felt that their company's leadership should be communicating more about current economic problems, and 54% have not heard from company leaders at all on the impact of the financial crisis on their company. By comparison, 74% said that they had heard colleagues and co-workers talking about the issue.

Of those who had discussed the financial crisis at work, 86% say that senior executives or management were seen as "believable" and "trustworthy" sources on the topic.

"At a time when working Americans are concerned about their personal finances, their jobs and the overall economy, employees are looking for credible, candid information, and right now too few business leaders are filling the information void that exists," said Harris Diamond, CEO of Weber Shandwick. "Employers have a great opportunity to communicate with their workforce about the impact of the economic situation on their companies as well as on employees."

"By stepping up and communicating more with their employees, company leaders will enhance their company's standing, consolidate their position of trust in challenging times and head off any inaccurate rumors or fears that are all too common in fast-moving crises such as these," added Diamond.

"In an age of greater transparency where employees play a vitally important role in shaping a company's reputation both in good times and in bad, their views have an impact that goes far beyond the office or shop floor," said Micho Spring, chairperson of Weber Shandwick's U.S. corporate practice. "Many companies have highlighted the need to invest in employee communications, and the questions raised by the financial crisis confirm how now, more than ever, employees need to be equipped with information from senior voices in their companies."