Already 41% of decision-makers in companies in Poland believe that in the future promoting physical activity will be the key to support their employees’ health. According to the managers, the greatest benefit of offering pro-health benefits is the increase in employee satisfaction (56%). The positive impact of this type of benefits on the efficiency of the organisation is also noticeable (40%).
Due to the pandemic, for many companies last year was an extremely difficult test of caring for the wellbeing of their employees, including taking responsibility for their health, physical and mental condition as well as appropriate working conditions. According to the latest report prepared as part of the Health Capital Project, one in four employees in the country believe that benefits supporting physical activity will be crucial for them in the future.
Preventive benefits – a must-have for every employer
Prevention comes to the fore – as many as 44% of employees declare that non-financial benefits supporting health prevention, which also include regular physical activity, will be of greatest importance to them in the future. Benefits supporting employees’ psyche come second (43%). The needs of Polish residents related to their mental condition are also confirmed by the latest Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) data. In 2020, doctors issued a record, over half a million sick leaves due to a severe reaction to stress and adaptation disorders while depressive episodes resulted in over 5 million days of sickness absenteeism among Poles. Furthermore, over 7 million people in Poland recently admitted that the current working conditions negatively affect their mental wellbeing – one in four people indicated too much time pressure or excessive workload. Another 10 million employees pay attention to the ergonomics of the workplace itself, indicating that an incorrect body position adversely affects their physical health.
Physical activity supports psychophysical health and reduces the effects of home office
The latest MultiSport Index 2020 survey shows that regular exercise reduces the negative effects of remote work – as many as 42% of exercising employees indicate that they do not feel any negative consequences of the home office. In the case of physically inactive people such a declaration is made only by 29% (-13%).
– Systematically and consciously undertaken physical activity improves not only the condition and endurance of the body but also strengthens physical and mental resistance. Regular trainings also have a real impact on the quality of professional duties – 79% of Poles who exercise indicate that sport improves their wellbeing and efficiency at work . Supporting employees’ health and the return on this investment turn out to be easily measurable in companies. For this reason, during the pandemic more and more management representatives decided to increase corporate spending on investments in employee health – in the Health Capital survey this was declared by 82% of them – says Dr. Adam Waszkowski, Analysis Director at Benefit Systems, Health Capital Project Expert.
CEOs see potential in promoting activity
Already 41% of decision-makers in companies in Poland believe that in the future promoting physical activity will be the key to support their employees’ health, same as building their physical (39%) and mental (42%) resilience. According to people managing companies, it is the increase in employee satisfaction (56%) that is currently the greatest benefit resulting from offering benefits in their organisations. The following places are occupied by image-related benefits (44%) as well as increased efficiency of the entire company (40%) and of individual teams (36%). One in ten decision-makers providing pro-health benefits, including those supporting physical activity, e.g.: sports cards, notice a long-term improvement in the health of employees (9%).
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Media contact:
Sandra Dobrowolska
PR Specialist
s.dobrowolska@benefitsystems.pl
Health Capital – a research project carried out in 2020–2021, which is a joint initiative of the Polish HR Association, the Union of Entrepreneurs and Employers, experts from the Human Capital Institute of the Warsaw School of Economics and numerous partners. The aim of the project is to increase social awareness of the need for long-term health support for employees and their immediate environment. To achieve this, the project experts took numerous steps to present the best solutions to human capital in companies and institutions to a wide audience. For this purpose, in 2020 qualitative and quantitative research was carried out on employees, management staff and decision-makers holding high positions in HR departments. As part of the project, cyclical webinars are also organised to discuss both the challenges of health capital and best market practices. Benefit Systems has become the Strategic Partner of the project. The patronage over the project was taken by the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Economic Development, Labour and Technology and the Ministry of Family and Social Policy.
Research methodology:
The survey on employees was carried out on 26.08-11.09.2020 by the SW RESEARCH agency using the online interview method (computer-assisted web interviewing, CAWI) on the SW Panel web panel. The research sample consisted of a representative sample of employees in terms of gender, town size, age groups for working people (N=1013).
The survey on employees of HR departments was carried out on 25.09-08.10.2020 by the SW RESEARCH agency using the computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) method on the SW Panel web panel. The research sample was a nonprobability sampling consisting of people holding managerial/director positions in the HR industry (N=200).
The survey on decision makers was carried out on 25.09-08.10.2020 by the SW RESEARCH agency using the computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) method on the SW Panel web panel. The research sample was a nonprobability sampling consisting of people making strategic decisions in the company (N=200).
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Benefit Systems S.A. has been operating on the Polish market since 2001. The company created the MultiSport sports and recreational programme, which supports an active and healthy lifestyle of its users. Sports cards provide access to sports and recreational facilities in over 650 cities throughout the country. The company’s sports offer is also successfully implemented in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bulgaria, and Croatia. An important area of Benefit Systems activities is promoting an active lifestyle at every stage of life, which is why the company undertakes initiatives to encourage physical activity among children, adults, and seniors.