Overarching Themes Discussion 21<strong>Employer</strong>s Are Engaged. 21Wellness is the Subject. 23Leadership is Critical. 23Safety <strong>and</strong> Health are Linked. 25Targeted Information <strong>and</strong> Resources are Needed. 26Conclusions 29Recommendations 31Endnotes 34Appendix A: <strong>Survey</strong> Results 35Appendix B: <strong>Interview</strong> Summaries 65
Executive SummaryA person’s place of work is an important componentof his or her social <strong>and</strong> physical environments. It caninfluence the individual’s choices <strong>and</strong> can provideresources to support those choices. 1 A workplace thatemphasizes employee health is likely to have policiesthat promote healthy behavior, such as incentives oraccess to health resources. 2Many large businesses have recognized the adverseimpact of obesity on their employees, <strong>and</strong> haveinvested resources in worksite strategies to increasephysical activity <strong>and</strong> improve the diets of theiremployees. Small <strong>and</strong> medium-size businesses havebeen less engaged in these efforts. One reason forthis lack of engagement is that small <strong>and</strong> mediumsize businesses are less likely to have the resourcesto provide worksite supports that improve physicalactivity <strong>and</strong> nutrition <strong>and</strong> reduce obesity. However,most employers in the United States employ less than500 people, making small to mid-size employers akey audience to engage concerning workplace healthprograms. In 2007, the U.S. Census statistics reportedthe following about employer size: 54% had lessthan 100 employees, 25% had between 101 <strong>and</strong> 500employees, 7% had between 501–1000 employees, <strong>and</strong>the remaining 13% had more than 1000 employees. 3The National Business Coalition on Health (NBCH),working in collaboration with the Centers for DiseaseControl <strong>and</strong> Prevention (CDC), <strong>and</strong> the NationalSafety Council (NSC), developed <strong>and</strong> implementeda survey to help underst<strong>and</strong> business attitudes <strong>and</strong>needs concerning obesity prevention <strong>and</strong> control.The purpose of the project was to gather informationfrom the business/employer community, particularlysmall (1 to 500 employees) <strong>and</strong> mid-size (501 to 1000employees) companies, about their needs, interests,opportunities, <strong>and</strong> challenges in implementingworkplace obesity prevention strategies. These findingswill help identify ways to communicate the threat thatobesity presents to the current <strong>and</strong> future workforce<strong>and</strong> what actions employers can take to address thisissue. In order to support these efforts, the findings willalso inform the development of a set of obesity-relatedtools <strong>and</strong> resources for employers to use to engage inobesity prevention <strong>and</strong> control activities.<strong>Employer</strong> responses represented the following themes:E <strong>Employer</strong>s are already addressing obesity<strong>and</strong> wellness in the worksite. <strong>Employer</strong>s aremore active in wellness activities that addressobesity than they realize. The results showed thatmany employers are already investing in obesityprevention, <strong>and</strong> even those that are not doing so areinterested in learning what they might do, how to doit, <strong>and</strong> how to measure success.E <strong>Obesity</strong> prevention/weight management shouldbe framed as an overall healthy lifestyle issue,i.e., as part of a broader wellness <strong>and</strong> healthpromotion program. Overweight/obesity can be asensitive issue for employers <strong>and</strong> employees. Whendeveloping a program, employers may be reluctantto place too much emphasis on overweight/obesitydirectly, <strong>and</strong> prefer to communicate the importanceof maintaining a healthy weight as part of a largerwellness program that strives to improve ormaintain overall health <strong>and</strong> well-being. <strong>Employer</strong>sare also seeking a balance between the role they can<strong>Obesity</strong>/<strong>Weight</strong> <strong>Management</strong> <strong>Employer</strong> <strong>Survey</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Interview</strong> <strong>Project</strong> 1
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