FIT FOR WORK
The health and well-being of employees is crucial to the success of any business and it’s recognised that staff are at their most productive and creative when in an environment that supports health and well-being. This is particularly recognised by big business and is why an increasing number of blue chip players in America are looking hard at, and adopting, a small, easy-to-wear Big Brother-style gadget that enables bosses to measure exactly how many calories an employee burns in a day and compares the data with ‘performance benchmarks’. And it is planned to be in Britain soon!
The technical bit
The gadget, from Dutch electronics company Philips, comes under the name DirectLife Activity Monitor, is slightly larger than a postage stamp, slim, waterproof and should be carried at all times during working hours, either in a trouser pocket, attached to a belt or on a neck- lace. It measures personal movement throughout the day and the intensity of it, converts this into calories burned and uploads the results into your PC nightly to a central website, using a USB connection. When plugged in you instantly see your daily activity levels on the opening screen, including yesterday’s achievement and the progress made on today’s target. At the end of a week the wearer is presented with a list of their daily, hour-by-hour caloric output and what they need to do to gradually ramp up activities to reach goals. As part of the service programme Philips provides a personal fitness coach who communicates by email to set daily targets and long term goals and gives tips on how to fit exercise into a hectic schedule. This monitoring gadget and scheme was introduced at the end of last year to a conference in Coronado Island, California, attended by President Barack Obama’s healthcare adviser, Ezekiel Emanuel, and celebrities that included film actress Goldie Hawn. The US spends twice as much on healthcare as Britain, with much of the expense met by companies, so unsurprisingly the device was welcomed by American companies who are desper- ate to lower their health care costs, and about 25,000 workers at 30 large companies in the US are now using the device.
What workers want
It is reported that wearers of the device are delighted with its sophistication, saying it is an excellent way to motivate themselves with reasonable activity goals that gradually increase over time. Philips reports that it has data backing up its business performance claims with independent studies conducted by universities in Arizona and Maastricht, Holland. Rachel Brown, a secre- tary in Britain’s private and public sector for 30 years and founder of Brighton-based Secretary Outsource, says that she can imagine that the device would be an ideal measure to gauge the activity of typical office workers, but that staying in shape is very much a personal choice. The number of calories burned by a PA varies hugely, depending on whether the job involves sitting in front of a computer screen for most of the day or running around after an active boss. “Whilst employers should encour- age their employees to keep fit and adopt a healthy lifestyle,” said Rachel, “I am not sure that something like this would make a difference as all it does is tell you whether you are active enough.”
“However, it always comes down to costs and in these
recessionary times I’m not convinced that employers would consider it” she continues. “Some enlightened employers do already encourage staff to be active by offer- ing employment benefits like gym membership. Others would consider that it is up to the individual themselves to make changes to their lifestyle if they want to keep fit.” Another who is rather sceptical about the monitor’s
introduction to this country is Richard Grace, joint managing director of Gordon Yates. “I think employers should leave well alone,” he said. “Monitoring calories expended is but a short step to monitoring calorie intake and meddling in employees’ private lives. All in the name of enlightened man- agement, but in truth to control. People should have the right to live by whatever means they choose – to pay their dues as citizens and employees and thereafter be left in peace.”
Does it have its place?
The British government’s view is that even a small ongo- ing investment of money or time in the well-being of staff can pay big dividends for businesses. “A successful health and well-being programme will result in reduced absenteeism and a reduction in staff turnover, leading to increased skill retention and a reduction in recruitment and training costs,” said their spokesperson. “A healthy workforce is a sustainable workforce. It makes common sense to ensure that wherever possible, the people who make up our organisations are in good health and feel good about themselves and their work environment.” A British government campaign named Healthy People
= Healthy profits (www.workingforhealth.gov.uk) is under way, featuring companies such as Astra Zeneca, British Gas Service, British Library, EDF Energy, First ScotRail, GlaxoSmithKline, Metropolitan Police Service, Parcelforce Worldwide and Standard Life Healthcare. A telephone survey of 2,500 employees across Britain is being carried out by GfK NOP to collect information about the extent to which sickness absence poses a challenge to business and what can and should be done to reduce absence. It will then be used to form future health and work poli- cy and will assist in the monitoring of changes to the promotion of health and well-being at work. So perhaps the Philips calorie activity monitor and pro- gramme could be the start of greater things to come! E
PA Panel
“Personally I do think this a step too far. I’m all for companies having their staff’s health and well being interests in mind, but would be annoyed at being told that I had to wear this gadget. That it was compulsory. If you have a mainly sedentary job, you probably don’t move around as much as you possibly should during the day, but that would be the nature of your job. How are you supposed to type –while jogging on the spot?! “They should concentrate on providing a good office environment to work in – i.e.
good ventilation, natural daylight, plants and fresh flowers. And how would they protect this information that they would hold on you from the gadget? Who would have access to it? Would it be used against you if they felt you were below par? Could you refuse to wear it? Could it become a disciplinary matter if you did? Don’t we have enough ‘Big Brother’ intrusion in our lives already without our employers ‘spying’ on us as well?”
Una Kiernon, PA, Arup
www.executivepa.com » Apr/May 2010 » 39
KEEP ON MOVING
■ Research from the Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences and the Karolinska Institute in Sweden show that long periods of sitting at a desk may be a killer.
■ Muscular inactivity and lack of “whole body muscular movement” are strongly associated with obesity, heart disease, cancer and diabetes, it says. In fact, they lead to a higher risk of death overall, irrespective of whether someone takes moderate or vigorous exercise.
■ While many office workers exercise outside of work, by going to a gym, walking a dog or going for a run, researchers now conclude that is not enough. Workers need to keep moving while they work.
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