VANCOUVER BUSINESS JOURNAL 2018 Healthiest Companies
Nonprofit/Public Sector:
Award recipient: Clark County
Small Employer:
Award recipient: Northwest Personal Training
Finalists: Opsahl Dawson, NW Staffing Resources
Mid-sized Employer:
Award recipient: LSW Architects
Finalist: Biggs Insurance Services
Large Employer:
Award recipient: Nautilus Inc.
Finalist: Corwin Beverage
Each year, the Vancouver Business Journal recognizes several companies all over Clark County that have made significant strides in promoting workplace wellness with their employees. Our Healthiest Companies of Southwest Washington awards aim to celebrate those employers who continue to place their employees’ health and wellness as a top priority in the workplace.
This month, companies in the Clark County area that go above and beyond to promote a healthy work environment were chosen as the award winners in several different categories. Runner-ups will also be recognized in this issue of the VBJ. The 2018 award recipients follow.
Healthiest Company Nonprofit/ Public Sector
Clark County
With 1,600 employees to think of, the Clark County Living Well wellness program supports the county’s mission – “to enhance the quality of life in our diverse community by providing services with integrity, openness and accountability” – through its strategic plan.
The Living Well wellness program mission is to “establish and promote the Living Well Employee Wellness Program to create a culture and environment that supports and promotes the value of good physical and mental health for County employees and their families to make healthy and informed choices.”
The program, which encourages employees to “be ENGAGED, be EMPOWERED, be WELL,” strives to help employees and their families by:
Reducing health risks through emphasis on prevention of illness or injury, not just treatment;
Empowering employees to make healthy and informed choices, focus on improved health;
Providing education and resources, and;
Celebrating actions taken for health.
Nutrition weight management and physical activity at work are both two important factors of the County’s Living Well program. This year, the County partnered with the Vancouver Farmers Market for the second year to host the Franklin Street Market in the Public Service Center plaza. The market was extended for 12 weeks this summer, and vendors provided a source of fresh produce and other healthy local foods for employees as well as the public to purchase weekly. The Living Well program offered Farmers Market tokens and branded reusable shopping bags this year through weekly drawings to incent employees to return to the market each week.
Numerous additional nutrition weight management resources and activities were provided to County employees throughout the year.
Physical activity at work continues to be encouraged for County employees through “Walking Wednesdays;” lockers and showers available in some buildings for employees to use after exercise; some sit-stand workstations for employees with sedentary jobs; promotion of local fitness facility discounts; a summer parks challenge; and more.
In their submission, the County wrote: “In our third year since rebranding the wellness program, one major outcome has been that more employees and more worksites have become engaged in wellness efforts. This is demonstrated by requests from work groups off the main downtown campus for onsite seminars, EAP (Employee Assistance Program) orientations and involvement as ‘department wellness champions.’”
Healthiest Company Small Employer
Northwest Personal Training
With a staff of 20 employees, Northwest Personal Training was named the Healthiest Company in the Small Employer (fewer than 50 employees) category.
As part of the communication education for their employees, Northwest Personal Training hosts monthly team meetings to provide information and education to their team. They also write a weekly health and fitness column for a local newspaper, weekly fitness and health blogs, and various other health and fitness content that is regularly circulated to their team through email.
Northwest Personal Training hosts three nutrition/fitness challenges per year that their team members can participate in for free, and they also host two health and nutrition conferences each year that their team members can attend for free. Monthly health and fitness workshops are offered that staff can attend for free, and team members receive $200 per year to use for continuing education.
In order to encourage nutrition and weight management, Northwest Personal Training only supplies healthy food products within the work environment, offering healthy food at team meetings, etc. They have also authored the Northwest Personal Training Six-Week Fitness Results Manual, which includes an extensive section on nutrition and weight management. Team members must read this material and complete a quiz to assess their understanding.
Physical activity at work is, of course, encouraged. Team members can attend group training classes for free; they can participate in 12 runs and triathlon events per year for free; team members are able to train each other for free; Northwest Personal Training offers outdoor activities such as hiking, stand-up paddleboarding, running, biking and triathlon clinics that their team can attend for free; and team members are able to attend two fitness conferences per year for free.
In their submission, Northwest Personal Training wrote: “‘The proof is in the pudding,’ they say. We challenge any other company against our employees in any form of fitness challenge or body composition assessment. Our employees are healthy, fit and strong. As a company, we enjoy low health care premiums and minimal sick days.”
Runner Up Small Employer
Opsahl Dawson
Opsahl Dawson, with 42 employees, also offers their employees numerous ways to continue wellness in the workplace. By using technology to operate in a paperless environment, they are able to offer a very flexible work schedule. The firm also conducts an annual “Biggest Loser Challenge” and report their weight loss each week and report back the percentage gain/loss to the firm.
With tax season being a grueling time for CPAs, from February through April 15 each year, Opsahl Dawson operates Monday through Saturday and provides healthy Saturday lunches and snacks throughout the week. During tax season they do two shopping trips each week to make sure the office is stocked with fresh fruit and nutrition/energy bars.
Opsahl Dawson has tried to combat sluggish behavior by providing every workstation with motorized sit-stand desks. All employees are also provided with a Fitbit that tracks their steps, and they hold friendly weekly challenges. Flexible schedules allow staff to participate in group classes and physical hobbies outside of work.
Runner Up Small Employer
NW Staffing Resources
NW Staffing, which has a staff of 45 employees, works every day to decrease their carbon footprint on natural resources by composting, subsidizing public transportation costs and working to become a fully paperless company.
The company’s company-wide Wellness Program offers all employees a reimbursement budget on costs associated with fitness and living a healthy lifestyle. Personal trainers, fitness classes and participation in organized runs are all encouraged and supported. Each branch has a budget to support a healthy workplace and the staff decides as a group how to utilize those funds.
This past year, healthy snacks and chair massages were some of the benefits the staff received. Each employee is inspired to set confidential personal health goals annually; if the goal is met, their name is placed in a drawing for the opportunity to win prizes at the holiday staff party.
Healthiest Company Mid-Sized Employer
LSW Architects
LSW Architects has a staff of 58 employees and was chosen as the Healthiest Company in the Mid-Sized Employer (50-100 employees) category.
Something that LSW began this year was the company’s “Bootcamp For Business.” This free fitness networking bootcamp involves bringing the business community together in a unique way outside of happy hours or luncheons. It’s to get healthy and fit together and get to know each other in a way that shows it’s good to get away from your desk and sweat every Friday from noon-1 p.m. in Esther Short Park. LSW started doing this in July of 2018 and it is every Friday, rain or shine.
LSW offers their employees flexible schedules in order to support healthy families and give employees an opportunity to participate in outside organizations and interests. Also, in order to support a healthy office, LSW pays for 100 percent of their employees’ medical and dental insurance, and 50 percent for spouse and children. Employees pay zero or no deductible for routine preventative exams and tests.
LSW encourages physical activity at work in a variety of ways, including the “Move Your Feet” Campaign that was initiated last year by LSW’s Principal Casey Wyckoff. The premise of the campaign is that participating employees would purchase a pair of athletic shoes, provide a shoe “review” after 30 days of using them and in turn would be reimbursed up to $100 for their expense. The definition of “athletic shoe” was left open to interpretation – it could include running shoes, hiking boots, water shoes, dance shoes, etc. After eight months, 19 staff members at LSW have participated with their shoe reviews posted on Instagram.
As one of the results of a company committee, LSW also swapped their fixed-height workstations for sit-to-stand desks. LSW also added monitor arms and keyboard trays to the desks, as well as anti-fatigue mats for those who choose to spend the majority of the time on their feet.
Runner Up Mid-Sized Employer
Biggs Insurance Services
Over the last several years, Biggs Insurance Services, which currently has 56 employees, has done a lot in terms of employee wellness. In 2017, Biggs Vice President Tyson Fuehrer helped to launch the Worksite Wellness Network of Clark County, which promotes idea sharing with other HR managers in the community on the subject of worksite wellness.
Biggs also offers a $100 reimbursement towards any gym membership or fitness class for those who prefer to pursue fitness on their own time, which numerous employees have happily taken advantage of. This summer, Biggs remodeled their first floor, and in the process they replaced the great majority of desks in that area with sit-to-stand models, which were a huge hit with the department staff.
During this year, Biggs also partnered with Kadapult, a Portland-based company providing wellness program support. They then formed a committee of staff members who, with Kadapult’s guidance, created an agenda of monthly themes ranging from financial health to mental health and including, of course, the many components of physical fitness.
For 2018, Biggs has seen more than 70 percent of their employees engage with the wellness program in some way.
Healthiest Company Large Employer
Nautilus, Inc.
With a total of 480 employees, Nautilus was chosen as the Healthiest Company in the Large Employer (100+ employees) category.
Through the efforts of their Wellness Committee, Nautilus holds bi-monthly Wellness Wednesdays where they bring in speakers from the community to speak on a variety of wellness topics that hit on all of the dimensions of wellness. The company sponsors an annual Wellness Fair filled with vendors and service providers focused on assisting employees and families on their wellness journey.
As part of their encouragement of nutrition weight management, Nautilus holds three weight loss challenges every year for employees to participate in. Employees are eligible for a stamp in their “Road to Wellness Passport” for achieving personal weight of fitness goals. Nautilus also offers free fruits and vegetables in their break room, along with healthy vending options.
As far as physical activity at work is concerned, the wellness program at Nautilus supports fitness activities in their company gym, basketball hoop and company-sponsored events such as the American Lung Association Fight for Air Stair Climb, American Heart Association Heart Walk, Reach the Beach Bike Ride, Rugged Maniac, Ragnar, Tough Mudder, Hood to Coast, Portland to Coast, and Nautilus softball and kickball teams.
Employees are also encouraged to participate in nutritional and emotional wellness activities, and to establish personal goals to improve overall health. The program rewards employees for taking preventative measures, including annual exams and flu shots/vaccines, as well as financial wellness such as increasing 401(k) contribution or completing a financial planning course.
Since the creation of the Nautilus Road to Wellness Passport, the company has seen year-over-year increase in employee participation. In addition, company employees have already logged more than 14,855 workouts by 194 employees through September.
Nautilus has also been offering free on-site biometric screenings to employees since 2012 and spouses since 2013 with a year-over-year increase in participation.
Runner Up Large Employer
Corwin Beverage Company
With 160 employees, Corwin Beverage Company offers a variety of opportunities to motivate, engage and inspire healthy choices and lifestyles to its employees and their families.
Onsite, Corwin has a physical therapist available to everyone; ergonomic analysis of workstation; workplace safety tips; workplace walk through for safety awareness; customized pre-shift stretching/exercise training; onsite health information postings and more.
There are also several resources available to employees by Corwin that reinforce nutrition weight management, including body composition analysis/coaching, a full employee garden, encouragement to drink water regularly and more. Healthy eating is encouraged through a fully equipped kitchen, a micro-market in the break room and free non-carbonated and unsweetened beverage options.
Physical activity in the workplace is encouraged through on-site exercise and stretch equipment such as hula-hoops, basketball hoop, table tennis, pickle ball court, light weights, jump ropes, stretch bands, standing desk options, walking huddles/meetings and more.
