Workplace Health and Safety Information and OHS Resources for Australian Workers. When we refer to hazards in relation to occupational safety and health the most commonly used definition is A Hazard is a potential source of harm or adverse. Report an incident or injury. If there is a serious injury or illness, a death or a dangerous incident, there are some things you must do. Manage workplace safety. Manage your workplace safety through training, first aid, protective equipment and emergency planning. Workplace wellness Wikipedia. Workplace wellness is any workplace health promotion activity or organizational policy designed to support healthy behavior in the workplace and to improve health outcomes. Known as corporate wellbeing outside the US, workplace wellness often comprises activities such as health education, medical screenings, weight management programs, on site fitness programs or facilities. These programs can be classified as primary, secondary, or tertiary health programs, depending on the goal of the specific program. Primary prevention programs usually target a fairly healthy employee population, and encourage them to more frequently engage in health behaviors that will encourage ongoing good health. Example of primary prevention programs include stress management, and exercise and healthy eating promotion. Secondary prevention programs are targeted at reducing behavior that is considered a risk factor for poor health. Examples of such programs include smoking cessation programs and screenings for high blood pressure or other cardiovascular disease related risk factors. Tertiary health programs address existing health problems, and aim to help control or reduce symptoms, or to help slow the progression of a disease or condition. Such programs might encourage employees to better adhere to specific medication or self managed care guidelines. Workplace wellness programs can be categorized as primary, secondary, or tertiary prevention efforts, or an employer can implement programs that have elements of multiple types of prevention. The lifestyles of people in the workforce are important both for the sake of their own health and for the sake of their employers productivity. Applied Calculus For Business Economics And Finance Pearson 2007 Pdf there. Companies often subsidize these programs in the hope that they will save companies money in the long run by improving health, morale and productivity, although there is some controversy about evidence for the levels of return on investment. The controversy is rooted in a large and growing body of evidence proving that much of what has been claimed as outcomes has been fabricated, whereas in fact the industrys practices violate clinical guidelines and can and do harm employees. This evidence specifically refers to workplace screenings and crash dieting contests. Non controversial examples of workplace wellness organizational policies include allowing flex time for exercise, providing on site kitchen and eating areas, offering healthy food options in vending machines, holding walk and talk meetings, and offering financial and other incentives for participation. In recent years, workplace wellness has been expanded from single health promotion interventions to create a more overall healthy environment including, for example standards of building and interior design to promote physical activity. This expansion is largely been in part to creating greater access and leadership support from leaders in the participating companies. The following information comes from the Kaiser Family Foundation Summary of Findings from 2. Kaiser Family Foundation Kaiser and the Health Research Educational Trust HRET conduct an annual survey of private and nonfederal public employers with three or more workers. Many employers offer wellness or health promotion programs to help employees improve their health and avoid unhealthy behaviors. Both small and large firms offer a program in at least one of these areas smoking cessation weight management behavioral or lifestyle coaching. Fitbit or Apple Watch. Workplace Health And Safety Induction Program On A Construction' title='Workplace Health And Safety Induction Program On A Construction' />Among most large  firms with an incentive for completing wellness programs, incentives include lower premium contributions or cost sharing 3. Some firms separate financial incentives for different programs and some others have incentives that require participation in more than one type of program e. There are various types of Wellness Programs offered in firms. Biometric screening programs can help identify cardiovascular risk factors in clients. Larger firms or businesses tend to facilitate more incidences of biometric screening programs. This can be in part to the amount of leadership support that is encouraged by company leaders and then received by employees5RationaleeditThere are numerous reasons to implement workplace wellness programs into the workplace. To begin, many Americans spend the majority of their time in the workplace. Additionally, the cost of healthcare is continually rising as result of chronic diseases in the US, workplace wellness programs can help abate this cost. Workplace wellness programs can also decrease overall cost of healthcare for participants and employers. More than 1. 30 million Americans are employed across the United States annually. Workplace wellness programs have been shown to prevent the major shared health risk factors specifically for CVD and stroke. Since preventing these major health risks through workplace wellness can help decrease costs for both parties, the implementation of these programs is important. It was as early as 1. When there is excessive psychological workplace demands coupled with low job decision latitude, stress increases as well as risk for CVD. Workplace wellness programs can be implemented to help prevent this risk. Increasing physical activity is an important part to in decreasing  CVD. Since majority of Americans spend much of their adulthood in the workplace, having primary prevention programs  that emphasizes physical activity can make this disease largely preventable. For 2. Rising employee health care costs have put a growing financial strain on employers across the country, with about one sixth of these costs directly related to CVD. Heart disease and stroke cost the nation an estimated 3. As these health care costs rise in the U. S., employers are seeing increased spending associated with health care for employees. Costs can be incurred by paying for care, and in lost productivity due to employee illness or absence. Reducing costs associated with preventable illness, like cardiovascular disease, is in the financial interests of both employers and employees. In order to ensure continued reductions in the burden of cardiovascular disease, as well as the overall sustainability of the healthcare system, a paradigm shift that places more emphasis on cardiovascular health promotion throughout the life course is required. Adding an emphasis of this health promotion in the workplace can help aid in the decrease of the disease. While the stated goal of workplace wellness programs is to improve employee health, many US employers have turned to them to help alleviate the impact of enormous increases in health insurance premiums9 experienced over the last decade. Some employers have also begun varying the amount paid by their employees for health insurance based on participation in these programs. Cost shifting strategies alone, through high copayments or coinsurance may create barriers to participation in preventive health screenings or lower medication adherence. Basically for every dollar spent on worksite wellness programs, medical costs fell by 3. One of the reasons for the growth of healthcare costs to employers is the rise in obesity related illnesses brought about by lack of physical activity, another is the effect of an ageing workforce and the associated increase in chronic health conditions driving higher health care utilization. Health and Wellbeing Occupational Health Safety.