Employee Wellness Programs (EWP’s) can be described as employer sponsored services designed to promote and maintain the good health of employees though such programs may differ widely in scope. Although the concept of employee wellness programs may sound like a new phenomenon in organisations a large volume of literature on EWP heralded its development and implementation. In the first world, EWPs came into being because organisations were realising steep increases in health costs.

However, in our own context, EWP’s have taken a different approach. Medical insurance has always been a condition of employment negotiated by employment councils in the Collective Bargaining Agreements. The implementation of these wellness programs was more in line with the W.H.O 1946 requirements which called for a holistic approach to wellness as going beyond absence of diseases to include individuals physical, psychological, social and spiritual health. It is a commonly held notion that wellbeing programs are vital for sustained high performance, productivity and engagement. Organisations offering these programs in Zimbabwe do content that intangible assets such as culture, skills competence motivation and social interaction between people and teams are increasingly being seen as sources of strength and enhancing performance, while culture and environment are viewed as having a powerful influence on behaviour. Therefore, adopting the usage of wellness programs helps employee to adopt healthier life styles. Although initially limited to company Executives as a way of increasing their wellbeing, self-image and self-esteem, EWP’s have now become rampant companywide practices.

According to our research, Organisations have come to increasingly realise that they need to create leisure time to allow employees to recharge themselves psychologically and emotionally which may lead to improved job performance. It is perceived that once talent is there, a high level of wellness also allows employees to perform at their peak. Wellness programs become enablers or drivers of performance which allow employees to also cope with normal stress of life and make the contribution they want to both the work and home. Not only are these limited to reducing illness, but such programs have made employers the employers of choice thereby reducing staff turnover and attracting the best talent. Resultantly we have seen a mushrooming of these entertainment and sports clubs in organisations some even owning Sports clubs the likes of many banks in Zimbabwe.

Another consideration is that Wellness programs are also perceived as team building strategies that increase staff retention and identity. In the NGO sector for example such wellness programs have taken a multipronged approach where employees from the various NGOs come together periodically to compete on a number of games or activities. They usually take place on a particular Friday afternoon with organisations competing against each other. In addition to allowing for networking in the sector, these games are seen as serving both the social, physical and psychological purposes. In this modern environment people have become conscious of the need to keep fit and also the need to break from office work and do other things seen as refreshing. Although there are costs involved like venue hire, start-up costs like uniforms and refreshments for the day, studies done elsewhere have shown that benefits outweigh costs involved.

However, other international studies have shown that no substantive perspectives on the effectiveness of  wellness programs exist. In Zimbabwe, the concept has been interchangeably used with social welfare and some organisations have limited these to the prevention, control and management of HIV/AIDS related diseases. These programs have been broadly implemented under the Safety, Health, Environment and Quality (SHEQ) Departments which focus on other safety and health issues of employees as well as assessing environmental impacts of organisational operations.

Evidently, there appears to be a shortage of skilled wellness program custodians in organisations some of which have not realised any significant benefits from the wellness programs. In order for wellness programs to impact on organisational success, it has been argued that there is need for a strategic and integrated approach to wellness. Organisations need to ensure that maximum value is added through investing in employee wellness programs which should address identified organisational objectives. There is need for analysis by experts to identify and prioritise issues and the related interventions. Not only should organisations implement these but need to monitor and measure the effectiveness of the implemented programs. The strategy for such programs should be based on a clear and thorough understanding of the health and wellness profile of the organisation.

In conclusion, our view is that organisations have a role to drive the behavioural change critical to the success of wellness programs. Just like in any other change management process, communication, measuring and monitoring of wellness programs impacts should be an integral part of the programs   so that such programs can be viewed as value adding otherwise they remain social clubs.

Emmanuel Jinda is the Managing Consultant of PROSERVE Consulting Group, a leading supplier of Professional Human Resources and Management services locally, regionally and internationally. He can be contacted at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. tel: 263 773004143 or 263 4 772778