The Workplace Wellness Alliance - Investing in a Sustainable Workforce

Over the past three years the World Economic Forum has successfully worked towards the goal of improving health and well-being through the Workplace Wellness Alliance (the Alliance), a consortium of companies committed to advancing wellness in the workplace. Established in response to a call for action at the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting 2008, the Alliance has continued to grow and evolve in terms of membership base and relevance. It is the stated objective of the Alliance to improve global health and productivity by making wellness a priority, starting in the workplace. In the year of the UN High-Level Meeting on Non-communicable Diseases (NCDs), mainly cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and chronic respiratory disease, the Alliance is of greater importance than ever before. With access to over 54% of the global adult population, employers are well positioned to make a valuable contribution to the battle against NCDs by taking measures to improve the health of their workforces. This report provides a timely progress update, building on the work conducted over the past few years under the leadership of the World Economic Forum, in collaboration with the Boston Consulting Group and integrating key inputs from the Alliance’s Leadership Board. It establishes the Alliance as a key resource for employers across all sectors of society and industry to contribute to the whole-of-society approach that is needed to successfully combat NCDs, rightly called “the world’s biggest killer” by the World Health Organization.