September 8th, 2008
Con-way Freight — Con-way Freight Launches Major Expansion of Successful Employee Wellness Program
September 8, 2008
Con-way Freight has launched a major expansion of a successful wellness program that is improving the health and physical fitness of its employees while reducing incidences of workplace injuries and their associated costs.
Initially rolled out at 14 company facilities across eight states, the company is expanding the initiative into an additional 52 facilities, reaching 4,100 more employees in another 13 states. By the close of 2008, the program, provided in collaboration with Wellness Coaches USA, will be available to a total of 6,400 employees at 66 facilities in 21 states. Con-way Freight is a subsidiary of Con-way Inc. (NYSE: CNW).
In conjunction with the program expansion, Con-way Freight is also launching a 10-week weight loss competition titled “Choose to Lose.” Beginning today, the competition is open to employees throughout the company’s network of more than 400 service locations. Participating employees will attend periodic weigh-ins, with $100, $50 and $25 clothing store gift certificates to be awarded to the first-, second- and third-place winners in each of the wellness program’s regions. There will also be an award for the service center with the greatest participation.
Extraordinary initial results and positive employee feedback were the primary drivers behind the decision to expand the program, in which trained health and fitness professionals provided by Wellness Coaches USA are stationed at the company’s freight service centers. “We’ve seen lifelong smokers quitting smoking, employees lowering chronic high blood pressure, overweight employees shedding pounds and still others discovering and being treated for life-threatening conditions,” said Bob Petrancosta, vice president of safety for Con-way Freight. “You can’t put a price tag on successes like that.”
Launched in early 2007 as a pilot program at several locations, participation in the wellness initiative quickly topped expectations, with as many as 95 percent of employees choosing to meet voluntarily — and privately — with their on-site coach for personal health assessment screening and counseling. The results were nearly immediate: by year-end 2007, the company saw workplace injuries and related worker’s compensation costs decrease by 80 percent, with lost work days cut by 75 percent at the pilot locations.
As the program has grown, so have the results, which to date have included:
• Nearly 831 employees losing a combined total of 6,269 pounds
• More than 170 employees quitting smoking
• 669 employees reducing blood pressure from hypertensive levels
• Nearly 1,470 employees improving overall health through exercise and diet regimens that lowered blood pressure
• More than 5,300 employees attending a combined total of 74,360 one-on-one coaching sessions
The company’s 2008 wellness program expansion targets 14 geographical clusters where a single wellness coach will serve multiple operating locations. Coaches will be covering facilities in Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas and Wisconsin.
At Con-way Freight, Wellness Coaches USA coaches have integrated seamlessly into the company’s structure and culture. They begin at each operating location by offering initial health risk assessments along with biometric testing including blood pressure and body composition evaluations. Employees may then choose to participate in one-on-one health-risk coaching to address issues uncovered by the testing.
In addition, coaches develop and promote wellness programming such as walking, weight loss and smoking cessation contests, health fairs and informational displays. They also assist with company-wide efforts like a video-based injury-prevention stretching program launched at every company location in early April.
“Con-way Freight made a commitment to the health of its employees and collaborated with us to deliver a program that produced results,” said Gene McGuire, chief marketing officer for Wellness Coaches USA. “The company proved that by providing resources, guidance and information, it could transform the lives of its employees both at work and at home. With the tremendous results we have already seen, we are thrilled to take our relationship with Con-way Freight to the next level.”
About Con-way Freight
Con-way Freight is the industry’s leading less-than-truckload (LTL) freight transportation company, providing guaranteed, day-definite regional and transcontinental service through a network of more than 400 operating locations in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico. Based in Ann Arbor, Mich., Con-way Freight offers LTL freight delivery across North America, as well as delivery in the United States for international less-than-container (LCL) ocean shipments from Asia through its OceanGuaranteedSM service. Con-way Freight is a certified FAST highway carrier and is ISO 9001- and 14001-, C-TPAT/PIP, ACE- and CSA-certified. Con-way Freight is a subsidiary of Con-way Inc. (NYSE: CNW), a $4.7 billion freight transportation and logistics services company. For more information, visit www.con-way.com/freight.
