PROVIDENCE – Ten companies in Rhode Island and southeastern Massachusetts have been recognized as “fit-friendly” worksites by the American Heart Association for helping employees eat better and move more.
The “fit-friendly” worksites program is intended to be a catalyst for change in the American workforce by helping worksites make their employees’ health and well-being a priority.
Platinum-level employers recognized for the November 2015 deadline include Amica Insurance and Banneker Industries. Platinum-level employers offer employees physical activity options in the workplace, increase healthy eating options at the worksite, promote a wellness culture in the workplace, implement at least nine criteria outlined by the American Heart Association in the areas of physical activity, nutrition and culture, and demonstrate measurable outcomes related to workplace wellness.
“Wellness plays an important role in Amica’s corporate culture. That’s why we’re honored to be recognized by the American Heart Association as a Platinum-Level Fit-Friendly Worksite for the third consecutive year,” said Robert A. DiMuccio, president, chairman and chief executive officer of Amica Insurance. “Our employees enjoy using the fitness center and outdoor walking trails at the corporate office, and our branch employees also participate in a variety of wellness programs.”
Gold-level employers recognized for the November 2015 deadline include: Alex and Ani, Brown University, Hasbro, Hope Global, IGT, Joseph Abboud Manufacturing, Lifespan and Navigant Credit Union.
American employers are losing an estimated $225.8 billion a year because of health care expenses and health-related losses in productivity, and those numbers are rising. Many American adults spend most of their waking hours at sedentary jobs. Their lack of regular physical activity raises their risk for a host of medical problems, such as obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes. Employers face $12.7 billion in annual medical expenses due to obesity alone. The American Heart Association is working to change corporate cultures by motivating employees to start walking, which has the lowest dropout rate of any physical activity.
Recognition is a critical component of the Fit-Friendly Worksites program. Employers that join this program qualify for official recognition by the American Heart Association. They are listed on the program’s national website, and will be honored at the Southern New England Heart Walk on June 5, in Providence. Qualifying worksites also have the right to use the program’s annual recognition seal for internal communications and with external, recruitment-related communications.
“The Fit-Friendly Worksites Program offers easy-to-implement ways for organizations to help employees eat better and move more, which will help improve their health – and their employer’s bottom line,” said Jessica Granatiero, chair of the American Heart Association’s Rhode Island board of directors. “Even people who haven’t exercised regularly until middle age can reap significant benefits by starting a walking program. A study published in 1986 in The New England Journal of Medicine found that some adults may gain two hours of life expectancy for every hour of regular, vigorous exercise they performed.”
For more information, call (401) 228-2325 or visit www.heart.org/worksitewellness.
