According to a European Commission report published in November last year, the UK is the most overweight and obese country in Europe. Roughly one in four UK adults are obese and more than half of them are overweight.
Malta did not fare much better in this study either, with the European Commission ranking Maltese men first in obesity in Europe, with over 65 per cent having a body mass index greater than 25, meaning that they are overweight, and Maltese women ranking third. Another recent study entitled “The Health Behaviour in School-age Children” revealed that an alarmingly high proportion of Maltese children are overweight. In fact, the study found that around 15 per cent of 13-year-olds are above the 95th weight percentile and hence obese. And since obesity in children tends to track into adulthood in third of the cases, this implicates that obesity, whether we like it or not, has become a concern that no employer can afford to ignore.
The European Commission report explained that obesity significantly increases the risk of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, type-2 diabetes, hypertension, coronary-heart diseases and certain cancers. For individuals, psychological problems associated with obesity are common, wide-ranging and potentially serious. Moreover, obesity causes other complications for the people in their work and working environment. This is due to the impact of excess weight on fitness, ability to use equipment and ergonomic organisation.
A study undertaken in an NHS obesity clinic, which sought the views of a sample of patients on how their weight affected their working life, revealed that 17 per cent of this population were unemployed or on incapacity benefits (state social security benefits), 79 per cent thought their weight affected their employment and in 58 per cent this was a negative effect. Moreover, 13 per cent thought their weight affected their promotion prospects, 50 per cent had taken time off for health problems which they attributed to their weight, 25 per cent had difficulty wearing work uniforms and 30 per cent had difficulty wearing personal protective equipment. In terms of work ability, the study sample reported that 17 per cent had difficulty with transport in getting to work, 17 per cent had difficulty in getting around at work, 21 per cent had problems attending training courses, and finally 13 per cent had difficulty with the arrangement of their desk and their computer.
When it comes to costs, a 2007 Department of Health review found that obesity in the UK accounted for £1.3-£1.6 billion of lost earnings or around 16 million days off, as a consequence of certified sickness absence. Obesity also generates indirect costs for employers by increasing workers’ compensation claims, (Osbye, Dement, andKrause 2007), presenteeism (Ricci and Chee 2005), and disability in people aged 50 to 69 (Sturm, Ringel, and Andreyeva 2004). Even without counting the cost of presenteeism, however, productivity costs attributable to obesity are significant. Indeed, analysts believe that the indirect costs of obesity may be greater than the direct medical costs (Wolf and Colditz 1998).
In this regard, one of the foremost experts on workplace obesity in the US, Dr Ron Goetzel, research professor and director at Emory University in Atlanta and vice-president of consulting and applied research at Thomson Reuters, who made his name pioneering health and well-being initiatives at Johnson & Johnson in 1979 stated: “So it does matter – if you have a choice between an employee workforce that is obese versus one that is not obese, everything else being equal, the costs will be higher for the employer of the obese population. There is a business imperative here.”
Unfortunately however, despite all this the reality remains that many employers represent an overlooked opportunity for advancing workable solutions to combat obesity at the place of work. Dr Jenny Leeser, clinical director of occupational health at Bupa said: “I think obesity is largely ignored by individual managers. It’s seen as a private matter and not something that should be tackled in the workplace. I don’t think many managers feel confident enough to broach the issue. Ignoring the problem, though, will soon not be an option.”
The causes of obesity are not straightforward. Nor is the notion of who and what is healthy. And the ability of employers to act is more complicated still especially because it deals with a very sensitive issue. However, the good news is that research shows that if a weight-loss plan is convenient, the workplace can be the ideal setting to tackle the problem. In fact, within a supportive work culture, issues directly attributable to obesity can be tackled head on. To start with, businesses should aim at encouraging better understanding and appreciation of the potential difficulties faced by obese workers in the workplace, from the amount of additional space they need to move around an open plan office, to their particular needs so as to avoid embarrassing team-building exercises which bring their weight into focus. Other options businesses can consider when addressing obesity problems include making on-site programmes like Weight Watchers available at work, sponsoring or subsidizing health club memberships, working with group health vendors to develop more programmes to target obese populations and implementing a healthy eating campaign, which should include healthy options in cafeterias and vending machines. Furthermore, companies with larger campuses can encourage employees to walk outside during their lunch hour or stroll by their colleagues’ offices rather than remaining sitting at their desks and sending emails. Dr Nerys Williams, a consultant occupational physician and former NHS honorary consultant in weight management, explained that campaigns like these are great and ignite people’s enthusiasm; however the holy grail of weight loss is a healthy diet and physical activity.
“Any well-being interventions need to take a holistic approach. This may include help with smoking cessation while at the same time advising people on how not to gain weight when they stop smoking,” she maintains.
Though obesity is a global health epidemic, it is, in many cases, preventable. Employers can help employees take their first steps in managing the problem. By so doing, they stand to save thousands of euros annually. Equally important, they stand to improve the health and productivity of their employees. Tackling obesity in the workplace is never an easy task, but even if an employer doesn’t have a problem at this time, it’s likely that the issue will weigh heavily in the future.
Finally, programmes and initiatives aimed at tackling obesity in the place of work need to be about helping employees, not punishing them or singling them out. But as more and more people take steps to improve their health, they’ll value an employer that helps them achieve their goals. These kinds of initiatives might in turn improve employee loyalty and position the organisation as a great place to work.
Ms Camilleri is a Researcher at the Foundation for Human Resources Development (FHRD)