Some noteworthy stats given by Randel K. Jhonson, Senior Vice President at the U.S Chamber of Commerce show that American corporations provide the highest number of health coverage in the U.S; with around 148 million Americans receiving a private sector employment-based coverage, on an estimate. It is alarming that almost 117 million individuals in America suffer from one or more chronic disease; that accounts for around 75 percent of health related costs, and almost 70 percent deaths in the nation. The U.S Chamber of Commerce suggests that effective workplace wellness programs have the potential to help maintaining the sustainability of various government programs. According to a 2015 PricewaterhouseCooper’s (PWC) Health and Well being Touchstone Survey, 73 percent employers offer an employee wellness program out of the 87 percent employers who are inclined towards workplace wellness.

Notably, one of the most promising workplace benefits is an employee wellness program. Moreover, to promote such investments as a way of lowering health related costs the Federal Affordable Care Act has designed various provisions. One study by RAND, during 2012, carried out for the U.S Department of Labor shows that around half of the employers in the U.S with minimum 50 workers, and more than 90 percent employers with 50,000 plus employees’ offered employee wellness programs.

PepsiCo’s Employee Wellness Programs – An Observation

PepsiCo’s employee wellness programs were examined and studied over a period of seven years by the (Research and Development) RAND Corporation, and released in January 2014. Accordingly, for every $1 invested in the efforts to manage chronic diseases, PepsiCo saved $3.78 on health care expenses. Additionally, Dr. Soeren Mattke, a senior natural scientist of RAND, stated that PepsiCo’s program provides a stable return for the investment made in managing chronic diseases. While, the lifestyle management aspect of the program did show benefits, it did not provide a huge number of savings financially.

Typically, this study does not describe PepsiCo’s employee wellness programs as a success or a failure. But shows that there is a short-term ROI on investment in disease management programs, and a long term ROI on investment in lifestyle management programs. Simply explained, those suffering from chronic diseases will show immediate results, thus leading to a higher ROI. While a broader aspect of lifestyle management programs, won’t show immediate results.

Inclination towards Employee Wellness Programs

PepsiCo has included a wide list of employee wellness programs, tethering to the various aspects of their employees’ health. PepsiCo has a Total Rewards policy that includes everything from an employee’s pay, retirement plans, work/life benefits, to wellness programs. They provide significant benefits like insurances, employee discounts, care support for children and elders, education assistance, parental leave, and more.

Companies are focusing on the workplace and employee wellness programs at a large scale. Chunking numbers of dollars on employees’ health is not possible for small scale companies. But for the companies with a larger workforce, it is definitely an advisable move.

Tailor-made Employee Wellness Programs

Organizations can take PepsiCo’s example to evaluate, plan, and create tailored wellness programs that can be apt for your company. Programs like gym memberships, yoga sessions, ban of smoking at workplace, etc. can create a healthy living amongst your employees.

PepsiCo has neither failed nor succeeded, but it has surely seen noticeable results by adopting many employee wellness programs. We agree that not every organization can follow PepsiCo’s footsteps. But you can surely tailor-make your employee wellness programs, leading to an overall healthier workplace.

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