Benefit/Health/Wellness Fair for Employees

DB

I have been given the new task of having a benefit/health/wellness fair for about 220 employees. Everyone works in one city but at multiple locations, covering 24 hours, 7 days. This year the fair will not tie into open enrollment period but it probably will in 2007.

As you can see, the program is not well defined at this point. I have no budget but can probably squeeze the individual depts for some money.

I'm starting with the basics of our medical and dental insurance, 457b plan reps and local fitness clubs.

Please give me any suggestions about things to include or problems you have had with benefit fairs.

Thank you in advance!

Dutch2

Contact your County Health Dept. to see what they can do to help, such as providing someone to take blood pressure etc. of those attending and/or to speak about the beneifts of good health habits,(i.e. proper dite and exercise). We also work with a local clinic to come out every six months to do blood tests at the company's expense. Also your insurance providers may be able to give you some good ideas and even help out a bit.
Good luck...

atrimble

Ditto to everything Dutch2 said. Plus:

We're heading into our third annual Safety Fair, so I feel like an old "pro."

The year before last, we got the local Lions Club to do hearing tests, and this year our vision provider did eye tests. Our work comp doctor's office and a local pharmacy have alternately done free blood pressure checks. Last year we also had voluntary cholesterol and blood sugar testing for a small fee that the employees picked up. Our work comp carrier has recommended fall protection/prevention training, and they will send someone out this year. We've had the fire department give fire extinguisher training. Last year we had a police officer talk about personal safety, and our work comp doc gave a presentation on proper lifting and back health. Because of our "industry," I've been trying to get someone to give us illicit substance and meth lab identification training, but most people that do that want some remuneration for their time.

We partnered with our insurance broker who provided fried chicken, and we spent the rest of our $200 per year budget on side dishes and soda. Each one of our Accident Prevention Team members mans a table or event booth with information or a presentation or some safety/health-related activity. We've had a golf putting display that showed dangers of line of sight, for example. We have brought in the local gyms, and our health insurance account manager always gets a table.

Sorry for the long response, but our Fair is my baby and I get excited about it.

DB

Thank you for the great info and please keep it coming!

Two specific questions
1) how do you structure the fair time (one day, multiple days, how many hours at a time)?

2) how do you structure employee attendance?

atrimble

Our situation is different from yours, so I don't know if my info will help! Almost all our employees work between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m., so we can schedule it during regular business hours. Our Fair lasts about four hours in an afternoon, starting with a voluntary lunch. Attendance for the Fair is "mandatory," but if someone is out sick or has already scheduled vacation or out-of-town training, they're excused.

I don't know what to recommend for a 24/7 crew. Static displays that don't have to be manned? Split shift for in-house trainers? Oh, my - can you imagine demonstrating proper ladder protocol at 2 AM?

Hey! Maybe you can hold a Fair training class and have shift supervisors learn how to pass on the information, and then they're responsible to have the Fair during 2nd & 3rd shifts. For those employees attending the Fair after regular business hours, I'd have printed materials on where they can go after shift to have blood/hearing/eye tests, or to get more info on gym memberships, etc. though some gyms are open 24/7 also and may have someone available late. Keep in mind that police and fire departments also have someone on duty 24/7, so they may have good "after hours" resources for training (though in my experience most PD & FD trainers have 9-5 jobs).

mwild3136

Here are another couple of ideas for support:

Don't forget about your EAP (should you have one). Most EAP's have a TON of information & freebies on their websites - a booth with a computer & some printed materials from the EAP is a nice touch. I just found out the other day that our EAP has discounts on Weight Watchers & Jenny Craig. They also have this cool website called the savings center & members can get discounts from several online retailers.

That said, some EAP's also have classes they can teach for a fee. We use Cigna Behavioral Health for our EAP. They have classes from smoking cessation to how to create a budget to first time parenting.

How about your 401(k) provider? Having them come out & provide information regarding an employee's "retirement health" is helpful.

Another one - contacting local gyms and seeing if they want to be at the fair and provide information regarding their club & possibly signing up members. I've seen this done & the club even held a raffle for everyone that signed up that day. Hey, it was 30-day free membership... x:-)

I'm a big fan of blood mobiles. They're fast, convenient & it's a great way to help other people out. Maybe contact your local blood agency & see if they can stop by so that your employees can donate?

I just saw something the other day that I really loved - mobile spay/neuter vans. The van comes through and for a fee - pet owners can have their pet neutered. A wellness fair for the pets too I guess…

As to structure. I don't like all day long affairs - unless they are on the weekend & then I don't think they are very well attended. I like a 2 to 4 hour time frame (depending on how many booths/speakers) & employee’s wander through. I saw this done at my son’s school & thought it would be a neat touch to ensure everyone made it through the booths – have them carry around a “passport” (it can be your “passport to wellness” & have someone at each booth stamp the passport as the employee stops by. Then the employee’s that have a minimum number of stamps – you pick – they then are entered into a raffle. Now, for my son, the prize was a big jar of skittles…) Finally, I think wellness fairs are great to have on a Friday - at least that's my experience. Good luck!

Mandi