Making a Great Place to Work with Low or No-Cost Employee Wellness Activities

In addition to many other hats, business owners and managers are also providing quality employment opportunities in their communities. We realize it isn’t a requirement to offer a fun place to work, but it sure doesn’t hurt. Peek into the culture and the work environment here at SSI and possibly find a few ideas you can implement at your company for little to no cost.

The Wellness Committee at SSI was created in 2016 by our company president and strives to inject a little fun, camaraderie, and positive mental health into a busy workday. The focus of the committee really starts with the SSI Core Values: Family, Trust, Team, and Serve. With the values in mind, a group of volunteers shares in the planning efforts. The committee is composed of an evolving group of volunteers with members contributing when they can as busy times of the year fluctuate between departments. Activities coordinated by our Wellness Committee include:

Gatherings

Food is the key ingredient, of course! SSI staff enjoy tailgates in the front parking lot with cornhole tournaments, games, potlucks, hot chocolate bars, and picnics in the park at lunch.

Chat Channel Challenges

Not everyone is in the same building, so many of our wellness activities are no-cost contests and challenges in an online chat channel, like Slack. For example, pumpkin carving contests and cookie decorating are done by employees at home with their families, and then photos are shared in the chat channel. We vote for winners using a simple to create, Google form and occasionally offer a small prize or fun trophy. Other challenges encourage people to share photos or stories based on a theme. These have included memories of office fun, hunting season pictures, holiday family photos, funny memes on a timely topic, sharing favorite fitness activities, and more. It doesn’t take money or even much time but, it is nice to find a moment to connect with coworkers as time allows.

Helping the Community

Everyone wins with an event that helps the community. Events coordinated by the wellness committee include collecting food for the food pantry, bi-annual blood drives with a bloodmobile on-site, collecting charity donations and allowing payroll deductions towards the chosen charity, as well as sharing community opportunities for employees that would like to volunteer for holiday bell ringing, Meals on Wheels, and more.

Healthy Employee Events

Walking challenges get staff moving with a little friendly competition. Participants can use their phone or another personal tracking device to track steps. The committee provides a shared form for self-entry of steps and periodically leaders are announced and a small traveling trophy is awarded. Other healthy activities coordinated by the committee include setting up on-site flu shots and annual blood work. On a couple of occasions, a health fair was organized by inviting local businesses to provide onsite massages, thyroid checks, fitness evaluations, personal finance information, and healthy snacks.

Wellness Webinars

These webinars are provided just for our employees by our health insurance provider. Check with your health insurance company to see if they offer this service too! Interested employees can log in from their desk or workstation and eat lunch while listening in on healthy topics designed to improve personal wellbeing. Past topics have included Reducing Stress, Eating Right, Exercising, and Staying Mentally Healthy with Technology.