New initiative promotes healthy work cultures

Working on Wellness is a new initiative that helps participating Massachusetts employer groups develop, implement and sustain policies and practices that promote and protect employee wellbeing.

Working on Wellness provides training, technical assistance, support resources, community linkages, monitoring and evaluation, seed funding, and participation in a Best Practices Forum.

Seed funding ranges from $5,000 to $10,000 per worksite. Working on Wellness will provide guidance on using the seed funding to develop a dynamic work site action plan.

All for-profit and nonprofit corporations in Massachusetts, as well as government entities, are eligible to apply for Working on Wellness if they offer health insurance benefits to their employees and the majority of their employees work in Massachusetts. Businesses must be in compliance with all legal obligations of employers, including, but not limited to, those enumerated in Chapter 149 of the General Laws, and with all applicable labor, licensing and tax laws (including M.G.L. chapters 149, 151, 151A and 152).

To be eligible, employers cannot currently have a comprehensive wellness program (the parameters of which are listed at www.mawow.org). Employers will not be eligible if they have received a seal of approval for their wellness program from the Department of Public Health under the Small Business Wellness Tax Credit Incentive Program.

Working on Wellness is a collaboration among the Department of Public Health, Health Resources in Action, and Advancing Wellness. It is funded by the Prevention and Wellness Trust Fund established by state law in 2012.

For more information and an application, visit www.mawow.org.

Wendy Gammons is MIIA’s Wellness Coordinator.