Bigger smiles and less sickness - more people should exercise at work
Ball games, walking or gymnastics. Employees from the Center for Disability in Lolland Municipality are exposed twice a week to many different forms of physical activity during working hours.
Together with six other companies in the country, they are paving the way for collegial exercise.
- We get a good cooperation with each other, and we get a better attitude towards our own health and well-being, says Kate Rossen, who is a special educator at Stormarken in Nakskov.
Clear trend
More and more employees are being offered exercise at work. In 2012, 15.2% were offered exercise during working hours, but that figure rose to 21.7% in 2018. This is according to figures from De
National Research Center for the Working Environment.
- People are happy and laughing. We have fun, and we get a break from everyday life, where we get some strength and activity, says Matilde Frimann Clausen, educator at Stormarken in Nakskov.
Six companies from across the country are taking part in the pilot project 'More Active Workplaces', run by the Danish Company Sports Federation and Trygfonden. The aim is to find out how even more workplaces can introduce and retain colleague exercise.
- There are some well-known effects such as reduced sick leave, increased job satisfaction and well-being, and of course also increased production during the working day. That is one of the reasons why we do it, but we also want more and more people to do it, says Kasper Kristensen, development consultant at the Danish Company Sports Federation.
Beneficial effect
No one in the workplace is forced to participate in exercise during working hours, but according to Karin Maigaard, Deputy Head of the Center for Disability in Lolland Municipality, no one has said no so far.
- Employees are also allowed to do sports in their free time, but during working hours, we think it helps to create job satisfaction. So it's a win-win for us as an organization, says Karin Maigaard.
According to the staff at Stormarken in Nakskov, the colleague amotion also has a beneficial effect on the citizens they work with on a daily basis.
Our psyche and our mental health have a huge spillover effect because we work with people, says Matilde Frimann Clausen.
Matilde Frimann Clausen's colleague Kate Rossen agrees. The citizens can feel that we are more fresh and positive, she says.
