The Need for Healthy Workplaces in SA

The WHO definition of a Healthy Workplace is as follows:

A healthy workplace is one in which workers and managers collaborate to use a continual improvement process to protect and promote the health, safety and well-being of workers and the sustainability of the workplace by considering the following, based on identified needs:

(a) Health and safety concerns in the physical work environment.

(b) Health, safety and well-being concerns in the psycho-social work environment including organisation of work and workplace culture.

(c) Personal health resources in the workplace.

(d) Ways of participating in the community to improve the health of workers, their families and other members of the community.

* Healthy workplaces can help to make businesses more productive and employees more engaged.

* It has been estimated that the healthiest employees are three times more productive at work than their colleagues.

* The increase in preventable disease and workplace injury resulting from unhealthy living is a major cause of workplace absence or disruption.

* Lifestyle risk factors such as smoking, excessive drinking, poor diet, inactivity and excess body weight can contribute to time away from work.

* Loss in productivity due to absenteeism, attending work when sick (presenteism) and premature death is estimated to cost $6.4 billion a year according to the Australian government.