Employee Toolbox : Supplemental Programs : Bergen County Walking at Work

The Bergen County Department of Health and the Partnership for Community Health, Inc., along with the Bergen County Community College, developed the Walk at Work program in 2001. The program educates businesses with the importance of keeping employees active during the day. When businesses register with the Bergen County Department of Health, they are sent an enrollment and recruitment packet with advice on promoting walking in the workplace.

The program recommends encouraging a 30 minute time frame during each work day for employees and employers to walk. The 30 minutes can be broken up into 15 minute segments, and can be useful in building office relationships and relieving workplace stress. Some people have walking meetings, others walk at lunch or just break up their day with a 30 minute walk break anywhere around their office location.
Bergen County encourages companies to hold a feature Walk at Work day or week to promote the benefits of walking. During this event, management can take the time to encourage this activity and lay out guidelines for when walking is appropriate during the work day.

A county-wide walk at work event is held in May in support of the National Employee- Health Fitness Day.(http://www.physicalfitness.org/nehf.html). The event is advertised through flyers and press releases, and over 40 organizations of various sizes usually participate. The program has gained popularity through the years. In 2003, there were 1200 participants, while in 2005, 2300 participants joined in the event.
The event is meant to be very casual and each individual organization is allowed to determine the distance that they will travel. Each group is asked to keep a log (which is provided to them) in order to record participants and activities. This log helps to track the success of the event and the progress from year to year. The Bergen County Health Department also maintains a database to help track this progress.

Results

According to the Bergen County Department of Health Services, people who have not previously taken a walking break often get “hooked” following a promotional event. The employees report that the walk leaves them feeling more energized and productive at work.

Within Bergen County there have been a few success stories that have risen from this program:

• In Garfield, the mayor and all municipal and senior management walked in the town’s park where T-shirts, balloons and water stations were set up, they had 150 people participate in the event.
• In Bergenfield, an indoor path was set up for anyone interested in participating.
• At the Target in Hackensack the usual 7:45 staff meeting was held on foot with about 100 people participating.
• The borough of Palisades Park had 53 participants in this year’s event.
• A lot of recognizable names are participating, including:
  • The United Way of Bergen County
  • Valley National Bank
  • United Water
  • Quest Diagnostics
  • Farleigh Dickenson University
  • Bergen County Police Department
  • YMCA of Bergen County
• The three groups with the highest amount of participation get to attend a special recognition breakfast at which they are presented with a plaque. This years winner was Janis E. Dismus Middle School in Englewood, who had 249 participants, or 67% of the school participating.

Implementation Steps

• Ideas for a successful Walk at Work day include:
• Offering T-shirts or other give-aways;
• Mapping out the walking route either through the community, on the campus/parking lot, or inside a complex or building;
• Design strategies to continue a more sustainable program with incentives offered throughout the year, and keep the publicity and rewards up through the year.

Resources

• http://www.co.bergen.nj.us/
• http://www.bergenpch.org/mission.html

Contact Information

CEO Partnership for Community Health, Inc
Bergen County
201.986.7715

Bergen County Department of Health Services
201.634.2709