According to the Centers for Disease Control, the flu costs the U.S. a total of $10.4 billion dollars in direct medical costs each year. On average, an estimated $700 dollars is spent per employee who contracts the flu. Not only do the monetary costs hurt business, but for small and mid-sized companies, employee absences, poor productivity and lost time can be overwhelmingly detrimental as well. Even if your company has relatively healthy employees all participating in your employee wellness program, this isn’t enough to guard your employees and your bottom line against the flu.
The most effective thing you can do to protect your employees is to offer a wellness plan that includes onsite flu vaccinations. Offering this important flu vaccination onsite at your workplace makes it convenient and easy for your employees to protect themselves, reducing their need for doctor’s appointments and taking time off. The convenience of obtaining a flu vaccination onsite also makes it much more likely your employees will be vaccinated, protecting co-workers, friends and family.
Companies like OccuVAX, a leading onsite vaccination company, can take the headache out of offering flu vaccinations for employees. Set-up, clean-up, nurses and supplies are all taken care of from start to finish when you schedule your onsite vaccination. If you’re interested in adding this benefit to your employee wellness program, you will need to contact your wellness broker .
In the meantime, here are some quick facts about the flu that should not be ignored when thinking about planning benefits for your employees:
- 75 million working days are lost each year in the U.S. on average due to the flu.
- $16.3 billion dollars are spent each year in lost earnings in the U.S. on average due to the flu.
- Flu symptoms can last up to two weeks even if you live a healthy lifestyle.
- Studies show employees who come to work with the flu are 20 – 40% less productive than usual.
The bottom line? Get the flu vaccination for your employees, it will save your company a lot of time, money, and counter productivity! 