Discover how to build a program that will instill a culture of wellness in your organization, starting from the day new truck drivers or employees are hired by making sure they are truly fit for duty.

1. BUILDING A DRIVER WELLNESS
PROGRAM THAT STICKS
An HNI University Webinar

2. Megan Young
Account Executive
myoung@hni.com
TODAY’S SPEAKERS
Jodi Mathy
Sr. Claims Consultant
jmathy@hni.com
Andrea Tarrell
Marketing Director
atarrell@hni.com

3. • Wellness by the numbers
• Why this is such a wicked problem
• Examples from the field
• Ideas to kickstart or boost your program
• The intersection of wellness and work comp
• Q & A
AGENDA

4. big picture:
why wellness matters
• build culture
• employee loyalty
• reduce costs
• improve productivity / reduce absenteeism

5. 75%
OF ALL
HEALTH CARE COSTS
ARE PREVENTABLE
 Heart Disease
 Cancer
 Stroke
 Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
 Diabetes
 Sleep Apnea
 High Blood Pressure
what a waist!

6. big picture:
why wellness matters
98%
of employers think they
have a wellness program

7. • Do you currently have a wellness program?
– Yes, and it’s going great.
– Yes, but there’s room for significant improvement.
– Not at this time
– Not sure
POLLING QUESTION

8. 9
what challenges
are we up against?

9. COMMON CHALLENGES IN THE INDUSTRY
sedentary nature of the job

10. high stakes

11. 12
more regulation to deal with
than any other industry

12. 13
long road aheadLife expectancy for
drivers is 16 years
shorter
80% of carriers report
health care changes
will adversely affect
their ability to hire
Obese drivers have 2X
the crash rate per mile
compared to healthy
drivers.
We have an aging
driver force - average
driver age is 52.

13. 14
requires investment
when profit margins are
already slim

14. 15
driver
perceptions:
wellness not a
priority

15. This is what we call a wicked
problem…

16. 17
Ingredients of a
successful program

17. MAKE A COMMITMENT
FROM THE TOP
• WHY does wellness matter?
• Senior leadership participation
• Budget and bandwidth needed for success
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18. MAKE A COMMITMENT
FROM THE TOP
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19. MAKE A COMMITMENT
FROM THE TOP
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20. DON’T TRY TO DO IT ALONE –
BUILD “GRASSROOTS” SUPPORT
• Driver focus group
• Survey [SurveyMonkey, eSurveyPro, Pop Survey]
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21. DON’T TRY TO DO IT ALONE –
BUILD “GRASSROOTS” SUPPORT
• No wellness committee? Make this the cause of your safety
committee
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22. KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE, AND GIVE THEM
TOOLS TO GET PHYSICALLY ACTIVE
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• Walking program? Not so much.
• Easy-to-do exercise routines and stretching tips
• Onsite wellness equipment, marked walking path, bikes to
get around
• Free gym membership
• Emphasize that working out can just be a few minutes
during breaks – every bit counts!

23. KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE, AND GIVE THEM
TOOLS TO GET PHYSICALLY ACTIVE
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Hire a health and wellness coordinator [options for small and
large companies]

24. KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE, AND GIVE
THEM TOOLS TO GET ACTIVE
Fit System and Fit Stepper
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Fitness equipment that works in a truck: kettlebells, hand
weights, stretching bands…

25. KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE, AND GIVE
THEM TOOLS TO GET ACTIVE
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Or even easier….

26. KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE, AND GIVE
THEM TOOLS TO GET ACTIVE
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Wellness innovator: Melton Truck Lines

27. KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE, AND GIVE
THEM TOOLS TO GET ACTIVE
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Telemedicine Success Story
– Driver with 160/110 blood pressure,
putting him at risk losing his CDL
– Used remote device to measure
– Received real time med and lifestyle
guidance on the road
– Now at 120/80 and still trucking!

28. FOCUS ON HEALTHY
EATING TOO
• Fresh fruit and healthy snacks
• Investment in refrigerators and invertors for trucks
• Nutrition counseling
• Crock pots in trucks – surprisingly successful
• Grocery guides, simple meal plans, and recipes
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29. FOCUS ON HEALTHY
EATING TOO
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30. BUILD AWARENESS BY
“KNOWING YOUR NUMBERS”
• Health risk assessments &
biometric screenings
• Help drivers understand their
health risks
• Options to make it easy:
– Mail-in kit
– Partner with a vendor that has
multiple locations
– Onsite screening (multiple
times/dates)
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31. BUILD AWARENESS BY
“KNOWING YOUR NUMBERS”
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• Program for drivers who fail their recertification
DOT exam
• One-on-one fitness training by a CDL Wellness
Coach
• Daily health screenings for blood pressure,
weight, blood sugar, and BMI
• Health education and nutritional classes

32. MAKE IT A TEAM
EFFORT
• Build a strong support system
• Wingman program
• Set company wide or department goals and challenges:
– Pounds lost company wide
– Recipe challenge
– Smoking cessation
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33. MAKE IT A TEAM
EFFORT
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34. MAKE IT A TEAM
EFFORT
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Terminal vs. terminal
Divisions or departments
Groups by driver manager
Groups by state
Randomly assign teams

35. GIVE THEM
OPTIONS
• Wellness is very personal – never one-size-fits-all
• Health and wellness fair
• Get their input and make sure your offerings align with what
they want to do
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36. SWEETEN THE DEAL
FOR PARTICIPANTS
• Positive reinforcement, continued support and incentives
• Integrate your program with your other benefits – health
premiums, safety bonuses, etc.
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37. KEEP COMMUNICATION
GOING WHEN YOU DON’T SEE DRIVERS
• Multiple channels of communication
• Social media
• Mailers to the home – get the spouse involved!
• Success stories
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38. KEEP COMMUNICATION
GOING WHEN YOU DON’T SEE DRIVERS
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39. KEEP COMMUNICATION
GOING WHEN YOU DON’T SEE DRIVERS
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40. USE YOUR
RESOURCES
• Use resources that you have available [especially the free
ones!]
• WELCOA
• Insurance carrier
• Benefits advisor
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41. USE YOUR
RESOURCES10
Share mini wellness booklets
with 12 driver-friendly wellness
challenges and simple tips to
change behaviors.
Participants who share their
success on HNI's Facebook or
Twitter will be entered in a
drawing for a FitBit Flex!
Order complimentary copies at:
hni.com/well-driver-challenge

42. INTEGRATE THIS WITH YOUR
WORK COMP STRATEGY
• Obvious impact is to benefits costs… but HUGE potential to
impact work comp costs as well
• Drivers with a BMI >25 (overweight) are off work
13X longer for a work comp claim
• Avoid making wellness another “thing” – at the end of the
day, same goals as your safety program
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43. 44
where wellness meets
work comp

44. • DOT examinations
• Post-offer physical examinations
– Extensive questionnaire
– MSK assessment
– Drug screen
– Medical surveillance
• Post accident physical therapy and
treatment
• Return to work
IS THIS DRIVER FIT FOR DUTY?
The cheapest
injuries are the
ones that don’t
happen….
“ “

45. • Are you currently conducting pre-employment physicals?
– For all positions
– For some positions
– Not at this time
– Not sure
POLLING QUESTION

46. • Snapshot view of the workers ability to perform the critical
physical demands of the position
• Highly individualized and specific to the job
• Used post-offer to make sure the person is fit for duty
• Useful in physical therapy treatment to identify crucial
physical task goals for case closure and return to work
BENEFITS OF AN ENHANCED PHYSICAL

47. • Employer prioritizes job positions
– History of injury?
– Identified as most physically demanding?
– History of high job turnover related to difficulty?
• Physical therapist reviews existing job
description
• Physical therapist documents physical
demands of job for ADA compliant job
description
• Job description reviewed by management and
union (if applicable)
BUILDING AN ENHANCED PHYSICAL TEST

48. • Physical therapist develops EPT protocol based upon
physical demands, documentation and client input
• Validity testing — client sends in an employee to go through
the EPT to validate the specifics of the protocol
• Revisions made as necessary
• EPT becomes part of the client’s Post Offer Physical process
• Placement recommendations based upon the candidates
successful completion of the EPT
BUILDING AN ENHANCED PHYSICAL TEST

49. Sedentary — Less than 10 pounds
Light — 10 pounds frequently;
20 pounds occasionally
Medium — 20 pounds frequently;
50 pounds occasionally
Heavy — 50+ pounds frequently
JOB CATEGORIES

50. • Role in physical therapy for injured employees
• Documentation of physical demands for treating physicians
– 3rd party objectivity of actual demands of job in injury process
• Role in fitness for duty evaluations
• Opportunity for education!
ADDITIONAL BENEFITS OF ENHANCED
PHYSICAL TESTING

51. • 24 year old male applicant paramedic
– Heavy duty job category
– Morbid obesity and knee surgery
– Enhanced physical testing for all applicants
– Struggled aerobically
– Lifting tolerance not demonstrated
– Clearing for position not approved
EXAMPLE: POST-OFFER EXAMINATION

52. • 54 year old female industrial cook
– Heavy duty job category
– Weakness in both arms
– MRI showed neck with central canal stenosis
– One level cervical spine fusion
– Symptoms resolved post-operative
– EPT with no limitations
– Clearance to return to work
EXAMPLE: RETURN TO WORK

53. OTHER OPPORTUNITIES TO LINK
SAFETY & WELLNESS
• Create stretching programs that align with ergonomic / work
comp risks
• Make a quick stretch part of your pre-trip inspection!
• Tie safety and wellness incentives and communications
together
• Implement training program on proper body mechanics such
as lifting

54. 55
how this all comes
together: examples

55. SMALL COMPANY (<50 EMPLOYEES)
• 45 employees
• Launched a incentive based program
• Employee can earn up to $250, or if spouse participates, up
to $500
• Rewards based on:
– Non-smoking - $75
– Preventive Care Appointment - $75
– Maintain current weight $100

56. MEDIUM COMPANY (>100 EMPLOYEES)
• Committed to making this a grassroots effort
• Incentives up to $500
• Annual wellness screenings
• Follow up coaching from a local health care clinic
• Referrals to 100% covered primary care resources
• Annual health fair and company picnic
• Share aggregate wellness results with the entire company.

57. LARGE COMPANY (>1000 EMPLOYEES)
• Discovered that 10% of employees represented 80% of the dollars spent
on health care, workers’ compensation, absence and disability benefits
($17,000/person, compared to <$500 for others)
• 1.4% were responsible for 40% of total benefit dollars.
• Analyzed employee health care data to spot problem areas
• Designed a program focused on:
– Managing obesity
– Blood pressure
– Diagnosing and treating sleep apnea
– Driver safety
– Lunch-and-learn educational programs
– Enhanced physical exam processes and tracking.
• Result: cost went from a 22% increase to a 1.3% decrease, and cite
wellness program as saving over $100 million in several years

58. 59
final thoughts and
Q&A

59. THE GAME IS YOURS TO CHANGE…
• Start slow, start fast, but START!
• Opportunity to attract healthier drivers to your fleet
• Engage and retain drivers by showing that you care
• Drive down health and work comp costs

60. INVITE YOUR DRIVERS TO TAKE THE WELL
DRIVER CHALLENGE!
Share mini wellness booklets
with 12 driver-friendly wellness
challenges and simple tips to
change behaviors.
Participants who share their
success on HNI's Facebook or
Twitter will be entered in a
drawing for a FitBit Flex!
Order complimentary copies at:
hni.com/well-driver-challenge

61. Megan Young
Account Executive
myoung@hni.com
QUESTIONS?
Jodi Mathy
Sr. Claims Consultant
jmathy@hni.com
Andrea Tarrell
Marketing Director
atarrell@hni.com