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Two years of collaboration between the Oregon Health Authority and business leaders has resulted in a new initiative called Wellness@Work. The initiative's

Workplace wellness is important for workers to stay healthy, but also helps cut costs for businesses, especially welcome in the current economic climate. Healthy workers means less  absenteeism and lower costs for health care, disability and workers' compensation. While Oregon faces high unemployment and a budget shortfall, the state is spending 16% of the general fund budget on health care.

In contrast to previous programs that focused on individual wellness, Wellness@Work targets businesses. “We’re hoping businesses will bring together a committee of employees from all departments to make changes to their workplaces,” says Dawn Robbins, the Work Site Wellness coordinator for the state.

Robbins says that they understand these are tough economic times, so some workplaces may be wary of spending money up front to build a culture of health. However, “lots of research shows that when employees adopt comprehensive wellness, the return on investment is high,” she says.

Currently, health care costs are soaring in Oregon, with smoking alone causing 7,000 deaths and an estimated $2.4 billion in costs and lost productivity each year, according to the Oregon Department of Human Services. Wellness@Work provides resources for businesses to help their employees

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