Healthy employees –a vital issue

The health programme the HR team has developed is impressive. More than half the 1,000 or so employees at Volvo Group Australia have participated in one way or another in the wide range of activities included in the Volvo Vitality programme, which won the 2009 Volvo Group Health & Well-being Award.

Volvo Group Australia includes Mack and Volvo Trucks, which produce their trucks jointly at the plant in Brisbane, and UD Trucks. Volvo Penta, Volvo CE, Volvo Buses, Volvo Financial Services and the Group’s business units are also included in the company.

The majority of the company’s operations are concentrated on the east coast of Australia. Lesley Koch explains that Australia is experiencing major health problems as a result of greasy food, a high level of smoking and too little exercise. These problems can often lead to cardiovascular diseases. According to the statistics, almost four million people in Australia suffer from some form of heart trouble.
“It goes without saying that these problems also exist in our company and it’s important for us to take preventive action whenever possible. Healthier employees feel better, enjoy a richer life and can also give more at work. So it’s a win-win situation from which we can all benefit,” adds Lesley Koch.

The employees are offered easy ways of measuring their blood pressure, weight and fitness, for example. They are asked
to answer questions about their health and are helped to plan individual improvement programmes.

A brochure packed with information is also being distributed throughout the company. Among other things, it describes the cost of smoking-related illnesses to society and the way blood pressure is affected by high cholesterol, plus a chapter on ergonomics describing the best way of sitting and lifting in order to avoid damaging the body.

In addition to the brochure, the employees in Australia have been offered a raft of activities – different training programmes, help losing weight and private advice on health insurance are just some of them. What is more, the dining rooms and canteens at the company now offer a range of food and sandwiches containing less fat and fewer calories, while fruit baskets are available at different departments.

 

“This is a never-ending programme. It’s important to encourage people and present good results,” says Lesley Koch, who can see a definite improvement in the health of the employees in Australia. “Many of them feel much better. We have reduced the number of employees with high blood pressure and we have succeeded in getting people to stop eating fried food and change to healthier options using a wide range of information and facts,” she adds.

The work is continuing with new projects. At the present time, a great deal of interest is being focused on information and help relating to drugs and alcohol. In addition, Volvo Group Australia is going to focus on a campaign dealing with the relationship between skin cancer and sun-related diseases.
“All the positive energy that is generated by the employees gives us the strength to continue our work,” says Lesley Koch.

Volvo Group Health & Well-being Award

• The Volvo Group Health & Well-being Award was instituted in 2006 and is designed to spotlight activities and projects that aim to improve the health
  and well-being of the Group’s employees.
• The first winner was Mack in Macungie, USA, for its work on the working environment
  at the plant.
• In 2007, Renault Trucks in Blainville in France was presented with the award for
  an ergonomics and health project. In 2008, the award went to the “Lifestyle in the West” project for its systematic work to motivate employees in western Sweden to take more exercise, eat more healthily and generate a sense of happiness and well-being.
• Last year, Volvo Vitality in Australia received the award for its comprehensive, nationwide programme designed to help employees improve their health. It won the award in the face of fierce competition from 19 different entries from various parts of the Group.