Businesses of all kinds have an incentive to keep their employees, agents, and laborers safe and in good health. It’s not just a smart legal strategy to avoid lawsuits. It’s also a very wise way of operating. Workers who feel secure and well taken care of by their corporate team are more productive, happier, and tend to become long-term employees.
All those things benefit companies and the people who work for them. Owners of businesses in every sector have created ingenious ways to build safe, secure workplaces and contribute to the general physical and mental health of employees. In addition to paying cash rewards to individuals who meet safety milestones, businesses use fleet management systems to protect drivers.
Some of the other tactics for achieving optimum worker health and safety include free gym memberships, subsidized healthcare plans and insurance coverage, free mental wellness services, on-site nurses, and sophisticated first-aid stations. Here’s more about what employees get from owners who prioritize wellbeing and safety.
Financial Incentives for Safe Practices
For decades, manufacturing and construction companies have offered cash and other reward incentives to workers who maintain long stretches of consecutive days without causing an accident or breaking a safety-related rule. Nowadays, even IT firms and many other kinds of businesses are leveraging the power of cash, bonuses, all-expense paid trips, and other incentives to keep everyone safe. The amounts are not insignificant when you consider that the average construction worker can earn several thousand dollars per project when no one on the crew violates a single safety rule.
Fleet Management Systems
Transport firms use fleet management programs to not only track shipments and comply with legal recordkeeping requirements but also to protect drivers. Dash cams let supervisors monitor road conditions in real-time and coach drivers on safe, effective ways to avoid collisions. Additionally, these same systems include ELDs (electronic logging devices) so vehicle operators can accurately record ROD (record of duty) status anytime, anywhere. Every jurisdiction is covered by the ELD mandate, which essentially requires every transport company to install the devices in every vehicle. There’s no other way of complying with ELD requirements as spelled out in the law.
Free Gym Memberships
One of the newer rewards for long-term safe practices on the job is free or heavily subsidized gym memberships. A few corporations have built their own on-site facilities that ensure a comfortable workout session, but most simply offer to pay for employees’ dues at local fitness and athletic clubs. Most owners and managers believe this practice helps cut down on the cost of medical insurance for their workers who opt into company plans. Plus, healthy, fit employees tend to show up for work more often and call in sick less frequently.
Subsidized Health Care Plans
One of the costliest benefits offered by employers to their workers is subsidized health care. For nearly a century, many large organizations have paid for some or all of their workers’ insurance premiums on such plans. In the modern commercial environment, employees typically pay at least a portion of the total cost. In the long run, people tend to stay with an organization that offers excellent health benefits. The other obvious advantage for owners is the longevity of healthy, fit employees who are happy to stick around and finish their careers with the company.
Free Mental Wellbeing Resources
In the 1980s, corporate owners discovered the financial wisdom of offering psychological support groups and counseling for their employees who had problems with alcoholism, substance abuse, depression, or simply wanted help giving up their smoking habits. Free mental counseling services and resources were a big hit and have become a staple of the commercial scene.
