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Corporate Plans |
More and more corporate
officers and business owners are realizing the benefits of providing
therapeutic massage for their employees. By relieving stress
and enhancing physical health and emotional well-being, employees
can be more productive while reducing the number of sickness
among the staff.
Stress in the workplace is a negative side effect of an employee's
work experience. Thanks to a growing trend of offering massage
therapy in the workplace, employees are able to soothe the stress
away and become better workers.
Research on workplace massage validates the positive effects
of massage therapy. A study by the Touch Research Institute at
the University of Miami found that after five weeks, a group
of 26 employees who received twice-weekly, 15-minute massages
in the office fared better than the control group of 24 who were
instructed to just close their eyes and relax. The massage group
reduced stress and was measurable more productive than the control
group.
Using electroencephalograms (EEG), the researchers measured brain
activity in both groups and found the massage group to be more
alert. Stress hormones, measured in the saliva of both groups,
also indicated a positive lowering of stress in the massage group
as compared to the control group. The massage group completed
math problems 50% faster and with less errors while the control
group experienced no significant improvement.
These findings are very significant. "On-the-job" stress
is estimated to cost the economy $200 billion a year in lowered
productivity, compensation claims, absenteeism, health insurance
and medical expenses according to International Labor Organization's
World Labor Report.
Every year, more and more corporations are realizing the benefits
of massage therapy for their work staff. In-house massage therapies
are being offered by small businesses and major corporations
such as Boeing, Apple Computer, PepsiCo, Sony Music, United Airlines
and many others.
"It's increasing in popularity," said Matthew Guidry
of the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, a division
of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. "It's
become a definite part of disease prevention and health promotion
programs in the workplace".
Most companies contract with massage therapists, who schedule
appointments with employees during breaks. Fully clothed, the
employee sits on a specially designed massage chair, while the
therapist uses a variety of gliding, kneading and finger pressure
techniques adapted from Swedish, shiatsu and acupressure movements.
A typical workplace massage lasts 15 minutes and costs $15 to
$20, according to Elliot Greene, past-president and current communications
committee chair of AMTA. While the company sometimes pays the
full fee, most often it either subsidizes the cost or the employee
pays the entire amount.
Companies are often receptive to implementing a program that
is such an employee-pleaser, but it's helpful to provide information
to get the ball rolling. AMTA provides free informational brochures
to consumers, and will help consumers or professionals locate
massage therapists. Contact AMTA at 820 Davis St., Suite 100,
Evanston, IL 60201-4444; phone (847) 864-0123; fax (847) 864-1178;
or via the Web at www.amtamassage.org. |
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