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Workplace Wellness Programs

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Employer promotions and programs aimed at supporting healthy behavior and improving health outcomes among employees are a $6 billion industry in the United States. However, RAND research has shown that these programs have little effect on health care costs. RAND experts have also looked at the effectiveness of employee incentives, and how small to medium employers can implement a successful program.

Report

Are Incentives to Join Workplace Wellness Programs Effective?

May 11, 2015

About four-fifths of U.S. employers with more than 1,000 employees offer workplace health and wellness programs, but employee participation is limited. Employers are experimenting with controversial incentives to encourage participation.
Tool

Health, Wellbeing and Productivity in the Workplace

May 22, 2015

Using data collected in a survey for the Britain's Healthiest Company competition, a study detailing the relationship between a broad set of health and lifestyle risk factors and workplace productivity found that lack of sleep, financial concerns, and giving unpaid care to family members negatively affect productivity.

Explore Workplace Wellness Programs

Dissertation

Dissertation

Towards Effective Design and Evaluation of Workplace Wellness Programs

Addresses a need in the guidance for a rapidly-expanding wellness market.

Mar 2, 2017
Project

Providing Support to the 'Britain's Healthiest Workplace' Competition

Now in its fifth year, Vitality's annual Britain's Healthiest Workplace contest continues to receive research support from RAND Europe and the University of Cambridge. RAND Europe’s role includes designing and running surveys, analysing results, and providing customised reports to participating organisations. The project’s central aims are to raise awareness and gain a better understanding of how organisations can engage with the wellness of their employees.

Feb 16, 2017
Commentary

How Businesses Can Take the Lead in Getting People to Sleep More

Insufficient sleep is linked to lower productivity, which results in working days being lost each year. With a few simple measures, employers could help improve the health and well-being of staff, improve their bottom lines, and contribute to a growing economy.

Dec 20, 2016
Commentary

Measuring What Works: Workplace Well-Being

The link between productivity and well-being is recognized and increasingly accepted as a prerequisite of strong employer and employee performance. HR professionals and CEOs believe that high employee well-being means high staff engagement and a real intention to do well for the workforce.

Nov 28, 2016
Content

Building a Culture of Health

RAND is supporting the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in its efforts to advance a Culture of Health, with the goal of enabling all Americans to lead healthier lives, now and for generations to come. Realizing this vision will require a national paradigm shift from a medical care-centric view of health toward one that focuses on wellbeing.

Nov 8, 2016
Project

RAND Europe Mental Health and Well Being Research

RAND Europe’s growing work in the field of mental health and wellbeing draws on expertise from across a range of disciplines and methodological backgrounds to bring an innovative perspective to our projects.

Oct 6, 2016
Project

Analysing the Impact of the Workplace Wellbeing Charter

Public Health England has commissioned an analysis of the take-up and impact of the Workplace Wellbeing Charter; the end product will include a set of case studies to help strengthen and expand the evidence base that underpins the Charter.

Aug 5, 2016
Journal Article

Incentives, Program Configuration, and Employee Uptake of Workplace Wellness Programs

The aim of this study was to determine the effect of wellness program configurations and financial incentives on employee participation rate.

Jan 14, 2016
Journal Article

Understanding the Relationship Between Incentive Design and Participation in U.S. Workplace Wellness Programs

We aimed to understand how employer characteristics relate to the use of incentives to promote participation in wellness programs and to explore the relationship between incentive type and participation rates.

Jan 14, 2016
Journal Article

Journal Article

Variation in Screening Abnormality Rates and Follow-Up of Breast, Cervical and Colorectal Cancer Screening Within the PROSPR Consortium

This study characterizes variation in screening abnormality rates and timely initial follow-up for common cancer screening tests.

Jan 5, 2016
Journal Article

Journal Article

Does Targeting Higher Health Risk Employees or Increasing Intervention Intensity Yield Savings in a Workplace Wellness Program?

This article aims to test whether a workplace wellness program reduces health care cost for higher risk employees or employees with greater participation.

Jan 5, 2016
Content

Healthy Populations and Communities: In Depth

In-depth look at the topic of healthy populations and communities, with emphasis on related RAND Health research.

Jun 12, 2015
Commentary

Claims of Wellness Cost Savings Are Overblown

Workplace wellness has become a $6 billion industry in the United States. Employers hope wellness programs can help control health care costs, but they are having little if any effect on costs. Companies seeking a healthy ROI should target higher-risk employees.

Jun 3, 2015
Report

Report

Health, wellbeing and productivity in the workplace: A Britain's Healthiest Company summary report

In this study we look at the empirical relationship between a range of health and work environment factors and productivity in the workplace.

May 22, 2015
Research Brief

Research Brief

Incentives for Workplace Wellness Programs: They Increase Employee Participation, but Building a Better Program Is Just as Effective

Presents information on the landscape of wellness programs, use of incentives, and their effect on participation, drawn from the first study on this topic to be based on national survey data.

May 11, 2015
Commentary

When It Comes to the Value of Wellness, Ask About Fairness, Not Just Effectiveness

Some hail workplace wellness programs as cost-effective means to better public health. Others question their value. Data show that both have a point.

Mar 18, 2015
Content

Workplace Wellness

RAND Health research on workplace wellness and workplace wellness programs.

Jan 8, 2015
Tool

Five Steps to a Successful Workplace Wellness Program

Workplace wellness programs can reduce health risks, lower health care costs, and improve productivity — but all programs are not created equal. This toolkit presents a five-step guide for the planning, implementation, and evaluation of a successful workplace wellness program.

Jun 24, 2014

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