When you run a business, one major goal is to retain your best workers in the long run. Employee wellness programs help you do this by rewarding and taking care of your employees. In addition to improving your compensation package, wellness programs can help reduce absenteeism and encourage productivity.

These kinds of programs are in high demand among today’s job seekers, so it is extremely important to put them in place. If you are struggling to think of the right ideas for your company, the following wellness ideas can help.

Healthy Cooking Classes

Whether you are trying to appeal to full or part-time employees, classes are an excellent way to reward them. Bring in a professional to teach a class once or twice a month. They can offer courses on gourmet cooking or healthy eating.

This kind of program is more than just a positive reward for your best employees. It can also empower your team members to have a healthier diet and lifestyle. When your employees live a healthy lifestyle, they are less likely to take sick days and will be more productive.

Being healthy will also help them focus better at work. Right now, American employers lose an estimated $576 billion from worker illnesses.

Order in Healthy Lunches

Another option is to order healthy lunches on your busier days. If you know your employees will not have time to leave the office to get their lunch, order some salads and sandwiches.

This provides an instant boost to morale. It also keeps them physically at the office so that they can get back to work as soon as possible. As an added benefit, buying healthy lunches will help your employees maintain better health overall.

Publish a Wellness Newsletter

If you want an easy, quick way to improve your employees’ wellness, try publishing a wellness newsletter. Each week or month, collect a range of health-related content. This could include useful articles, recipes, and nutrition guides.

Make sure to discuss the importance of continued education in nutrition. You can also include recommendations for local fitness studios, free health classes, and other resources for healthy living.

Offer Sports Equipment

Sometimes, the biggest obstacle between the desire to live healthily and actually doing it is the cost. Paying for a gym membership or buying sports equipment can be expensive for an individual.

In addition, most employees are tired by the time they return home and may be unable to get through a workout. To help these employees out, try stocking the office with jump ropes, sports balls, hula hoops, and medicine balls.

These tools can help employees get a quick, easy workout on their lunch break so they don’t have to worry about it after work. Plus, you can encourage workouts by discussing the benefits of physical activity in the middle of the day.

Host Fitness Challenges

For your more competitive employees, fitness challenges are an excellent way to encourage physical fitness. This could be a competition to do a certain number of miles or steps.

You can offer employee races or encourage biking to work for a certain number of days each month. By making fitness goals into a challenge or competition, you can encourage more people to participate.

Offer Paid Volunteer Time

Volunteering is an excellent way to give back to the community and to make a difference. Often, people get so busy with their daily schedules that they forget about volunteering activities completely.

By offering paid volunteer time, you can encourage your employees to get out of the office for a while. It can be a bonding exercise for your project team or simply a way to help the community. You can schedule volunteer outings for your entire organization if you want to promote team building.

Play Music

If you do not have enough money to invest in sports equipment or cooking classes, music is a cheaper, simpler way to promote wellness in the workplace. Playing music has been shown to improve focus and concentration. In addition, it can boost morale levels among your employees.

Get Pet-Friendly Options

Some companies are pet-friendly 100 percent of the time. If this is too extreme for your company, you can start by having pet-friendly options once or twice a week. During this day of the week, your employees can bring their pets with them to the office.

Other than making pet owners happy, being around dogs has been shown to improve mental health and happiness. This means that allowing pets in the office can make employees more enthusiastic and excited about coming to work in the morning.

Go on a Company Retreat

One of the best expert team building ideas is to host a company retreat. This helps to promote bonding while providing your staff members with a mental break from the office. Each year, bring the entire company on a weekend retreat.

Use this time to encourage relaxation and interpersonal bonding. When your employees are friends with their coworkers, they are more likely to remain at your company for a long time.

Keep Your People Happy

Each company is different, so the right benefits package can vary. While one company may benefit from an annual retreat, other businesses may want to invest in sports equipment or fitness challenges.

With some careful planning, the previous ideas can get you started on offering the best employee incentive programs and wellness options.