Putting employees first: 5 steps to building a culture of well-being
Employers can help employees bring their best selves to work by prioritizing wellness benefits, which can also lead to a positive return on investment.
There is a lot of focus these days on well-being in the workplace. And while “well-being” and “wellness” are often used interchangeably, they can have distinct meanings. “Wellness” can refer to physical health and lifestyle, whereas “well-being” can encompass a broader range of health, including mental health. Improving wellness may lead to better overall well-being and promote whole-person health.
This distinction is important for brokers, consultants and employers to understand, as today’s employees are more focused on their health and well-being than ever before. In fact, nearly 9 in 10 surveyed employees said they’d only consider working for companies that prioritize well-being.1 Additionally, employers who meet this demand are finding that investing in wellness programs is mutually beneficial, with 90% of those surveyed reporting a positive return on investment (ROI)2 and 56% reporting a significant ROI.1
Positive ROI can be partly attributed to the fact that many chronic diseases have underlying causes, such as obesity, which may be linked to certain behaviors and habits. By improving employee wellness, employers may prevent the development of chronic illnesses, leading to lower health care costs for both employees and employers.3 And the advantages don’t stop there — organizations with well-being programs also reported seeing a 35% increase in employee productivity.4
So, how can employers get started? Consider these 5 strategies:
1. Prioritize and promote preventive care
While many health plans offer preventive care at low or no costs to members, it’s important for employers to review and ensure that the coverage, coinsurance and copays for different services and screenings align with the specific needs of their member population.
For instance, if an employer has a predominantly female member population, it may be important to confirm the coverage for mammography and colorectal screenings. Breast and colon cancer are 2 of the 10 most common cancers and disproportionately affect women.5 Making these screenings more accessible and affordable for employees could potentially lead to earlier detection of cancer or other health issues, allowing treatment to begin before the disease progresses.
UnitedHealthcare understands this and is working to make screenings more accessible by offering at-home options for members to discuss with their providers, and expanding coverage for additional diagnostic imaging, such as MRIs or ultrasounds that often come at a higher cost.
Additionally, annual wellness visits, typically conducted with a primary care provider (PCP), can help identify potential gaps in care or factors that may directly or indirectly affect one’s overall health and well-being, known as social drivers of health (SDOH). These visits can then help to connect patients to appropriate services and programs.
2. Invest in wellness programs and solutions that encourage healthier lifestyles
While establishing and maintaining healthy lifestyles can help reduce the risk of health issues,3 many employees may find it difficult to do so when juggling work, family and other life responsibilities. Employers can help by designing a benefits package that includes programs promoting healthy habits and supporting employees on their journey to better overall, whole-person health.
Oftentimes, these programs can be more effective when employees are incentivized to take action. For example, UnitedHealthcare Rewards is an incentive program where employees and their spouses can earn rewards for reaching program goals and completing qualifying activities. The program allows employees to personalize their experience by selecting the activities they wish to participate in and then choosing how they want to spend their earnings.
Employers can also implement their own take on an incentive program. For instance, Children’s Friend, a child welfare organization, waived employees’ deductibles if they completed 5 healthy activities within a certain timeframe.
Other programs may target specific lifestyle changes, such as weight loss and smoking cessation. What makes these programs effective is that they often take a multi-pronged approach — combining coaching, tracking and educational resources — and are clinically designed to deliver proven results:
- 88% of participants, who are at-risk of developing a chronic condition, lost weight with the UnitedHealthcare Real Appeal® weight management solution7
- 50% of participants quit smoking with the UnitedHealthcare Quit For Life® tobacco cessation program8
UnitedHealthcare also offers access to a variety of health and wellness vendors through UHC Hub™, a curated network of vendors that employers can choose from to complement existing offerings. These vendors include:
- Noom, an app that helps members manage weight and may also save them money. Noom users with a BMI of 25+ who used the app at least 10 times over the course of 3 or more months saw $1,219 in health savings over 2 years9
- Maven, a digital platform for reproductive and family support — including maternity, pediatric and menopause — with users claiming a 96% increase in their loyalty to employers10
- LetsGetChecked, a solution that provides health screening solutions to help manage certain health conditions, with 60% of members choosing at-home biometric screenings over other options11
Additionally, UHC Store will be launching later in 2025, offering employees the opportunity to purchase health and wellness solutions at a discount to further support their individual health journeys.
3. Establish a committee to lead wellness initiatives
One way to get employees more engaged with their health benefits could be to form a committee of employees with the goal of developing and leading wellness initiatives. Workplace wellness committees can help improve the overall health, satisfaction, productivity and engagement of employees.12
Building a wellness committee can start by identifying a cross-section of employees who represent the diversity of an employer’s workforce. Ideally, the committee would meet regularly to assess the impact of current wellness programs and evaluate additional opportunities to meet employee needs and preferences.
The committee could also lead coordinated challenges like monthly step goals, host wellness-themed events and webinars, and even distribute a quarterly monthly newsletter highlighting upcoming challenges and past winners.
This camaraderie of shared health and wellness goals may foster a sense of community among the workforce. And a healthier workforce can lead to cost savings for employers.
4. Offer on-site health and wellness services or activities
Employers with a strong, in-person office culture may find that offering health- and wellness-related services on-site can further enhance a culture of well-being. This may be especially true for working parents who struggle to find time before or after work to address their health needs.
These services can include:
- Annual on-site biometric screening and vaccination events
- On-site fitness centers or clinics that treat minor illnesses and injuries
- Pharmacies that can fill prescriptions and provide information on other health-related concerns
The advantages of these on-site services can be numerous. Their convenient location allows employees to take care of their health and well-being or see providers without a commute, which can reduce work absenteeism and prevent employees from deferring or delaying care. For example, one employer saw a 5.5% decrease in emergency visits among employees who used their on-site health center compared to those who did not.13
5. Help employees realize the benefits and programs available to them
While many employers offer in-demand wellness benefits and programs — in fact, the average employer offers 22 different wellness options14 — only 23% of employees actually report using these benefits.15 This could be attributed to the fact that many employees lack a clear understanding of the benefits and programs available to them, which can lead to low engagement.
That’s why it’s important for employers to commit to driving awareness of these programs — including preventive care visits, screenings and wellness initiatives — so employees are aware of the benefits provided through their employer-sponsored plans. To increase engagement, employers can regularly educate employees about their options and reassure them that utilizing these benefits won’t lead to additional out-of-pocket costs.
The result could be a win-win for both employers and employees. Increasing engagement with these offerings or programs may lead to a more meaningful ROI for employers and a healthier workforce. For instance, UHC Rewards participants were more engaged with their health plan throughout the year and visited the UnitedHealthcare® app 2.3 times more often than those who didn’t participate in the program.16
When employers encourage employees to use the tools and resources available through their health plan, they can help empower employees to make better health care decisions. This can lead to healthier employees, possibly fewer medical expenses and a more efficient use of health care services — ultimately helping employers and employees better manage health care costs.
Best practices for building a more engaged workforce
Employers who help educate their employees about their health plan and benefits can help drive engagement, which may result in better outcomes and lower costs.
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