The sa国际传媒 Ferry Corp. has 3,000 complex systems that are essential to manoeuvre its ships, keep them running and ensure the safety of passengers. Those systems are called people.
The corporation is spending $300 on each of its unionized workers so they can buy new running shoes or pay for gym memberships in an effort to keep them healthy. If it were spending that money on lubricant for a drive shaft or maintenance on an autopilot, the dollars would clearly be well-spent.
A few hundred dollars is equally well-spent if the humans on board get injured or ill less often.
Ferries is offering the members of the sa国际传媒 Ferry and Marine Workers Union a $300 gift certificate to Mountain Equipment Co-op or Sport Chek or $300 toward fitness-centre fees. It鈥檚 partly a reward for the corporation鈥檚 improved safety record and partly and investment in prevention.
Like most employers, sa国际传媒 Ferries pays WorkSafe sa国际传媒 for workers鈥�-compensation coverage. In 2006, its claims costs were $3.5 million; last year they had fallen to $800,000. That鈥檚 a clear saving.
If the corporation wants to invest some of that saving to try to reduce injuries and illnesses even further, it鈥檚 worth experimenting.
It would be an even better experiment if those gift certificates were for local companies. There are locally owned stores on the Island that would be happy to outfit Ferries workers in new gear.
The fitness cash dovetails with the corporation鈥檚 SailSafe program, which concentrates on reducing injuries and improving health of workers. Research suggests such programs will pay off.
A U.S. study released by Harvard University in 2010 found that for every dollar spent on workplace wellness programs, medical costs fell by $3.27 and absenteeism costs dropped by $2.73.
In two years, DuPont Corporation reduced the number of disability days by more than 11,700 after it created a wellness program. Attendance went up by 19 per cent a year at its Tennessee plant.
Regular exercise increases bone density and strengthens muscles and tendons, all good for preventing injury.
The Mayo Clinic says fitness controls weight, combats health conditions and diseases, improves mood, boosts energy and promotes better sleep. Healthy, well-rested, energetic and cheerful workers are a boon to any organization, but especially one as customer-oriented as sa国际传媒 Ferries should be.
Rather than just tossing out the money, sa国际传媒 Ferries managers should try to measure the impact on workers鈥� health and injury rates. It鈥檚 good planning and it will also provide answers for those who are outraged at the thought of spending $900,000 on fitness gear when fares are rising and services face cuts.
The Consumers鈥� Association of sa国际传媒 and the Canadian Taxpayers Federation have said they are outraged by the giveaway. The federation鈥檚 Jason Bateman said it adds fuel to the notion that ferry workers and public servants get freebies that aren鈥檛 available to regular taxpayers, who have to look after their own physical fitness.
But the spread of such programs throughout private industry suggests fitness and wellness programs are not just frills for public employees. They also make business sense by saving money and increasing productivity by reducing absenteeism.
In a private company, any savings would benefit shareholders. In the case of sa国际传媒 Ferries, the savings should not be frittered away. Telling ferry users and taxpayers what is being done with the money would foster transparency.
If the ferry corporation can save money on the bottom line by helping its workers get healthier and fitter, ferry users and taxpayers reap the benefits.
