Wellness Program Participation and its Association With Illness-Related Absenteeism and Turnover: One University's...

Area of Science:

• Occupational Health
• Health Services Research
• Human Resources Management

Background:

• Employee absenteeism and turnover pose significant costs to organizations.
• Health and wellness initiatives (HWIs) are increasingly implemented to improve employee well-being.
• The impact of HWIs on key organizational metrics like absenteeism and turnover requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the association between participation in a health and wellness initiative (HWI) and subsequent illness-related absenteeism (IRA) and employee turnover.
• To quantify the relationship between HWI engagement and reductions in workforce absence and attrition.

Main Methods:

• A time-series design was employed for analyzing IRA (2016-2019) and turnover (2016-2020) data.
• Propensity score matching and linear mixed-effects regression were used for IRA analysis.
• Logistic regression modeled the impact of 2016 HWI participation on 2017-2020 turnover.

Main Results:

• Illness-related absenteeism (IRA) increased by 15.8% for HWI participants versus 50.0% for non-participants (P > 0.001) between 2016 and 2019.
• HWI participation in 2016 was associated with a reduced likelihood of subsequent turnover (odds ratio = 0.90).

Conclusions:

• Comprehensive health and wellness programs may be a valuable strategy for employers.
• Implementing HWIs can potentially lead to decreased illness-related absenteeism and employee turnover.
• Organizations should consider investing in wellness programs to foster a healthier and more stable workforce.