Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effectiveness of employee wellness programs on employee engagement and the reduction of employee health care costs. The intent of the analysis is to explain the typical costs associated with these programs and the potential benefits to the employer and employee. Design/methodology/approach -Due to the paucity of academic literature on the operational impact of employee wellness programs, a case study utilizing an internal company's resources and employee survey were also used to examine business questions related to the efficacy of such programs in businesses. Findings -The results of the employee survey showed that there is a correlation between eating a balanced diet and being more productive at work. Also, there is a link between being in good physical health, potentially because employees participate in the wellness program, and being productive at work. On the other hand, it was also found that employees who do not eat a very balanced diet, do not like the company's wellness plan and are not convinced that it would make employees more productive. Practical implications -For a company designing its wellness program, it should tap information through an employee survey on how many employees have each of the significant risk factors for using medical services and determine which risk factors to target in its wellness program. Originality/value -An operational framework is presented to determine when employer-sponsored wellness programs are appropriate for employers to offer. Detailed discussion and analysis given on employee wellness programs from both the employer and employee perspective to determine if these programs can be justified and recommended to organizations who do not currently participate will help protect many vulnerable employees and improve organization productivity.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, sociology was becoming established as a discipline in the United States and Great Britain. This article looks closely at the lives and work of two prominent sociologists at this time, Patrick Geddes and Lester F. Ward. As sociology was becoming established in academic departments, neither Ward’s nor Geddes’ thought managed to survive intact. A number of factors played into this process, especially the overall broadness of their perspectives, as well as the incompatibility of several of their key concerns, including gender, religion, race and education, with the eventual trajectory of the sociology and the scholars who were involved in consolidating the discipline as such.

No abstract

Sociologists have long recognized the fragmentation our discipline's knowledge, but few explanations go beyond Bnew internalist^studies of practices. Abbott's scholarship in the topic areas of professions and disciplines is synthesized here to highlight a condition identified as Bajurisdiction,^or, the absence of professional responsibility. Ajurisdiction explains sociological fragmentation by situating the development of sociology within broader historical contexts: first, within the history of the academic profession, in general; and, secondly, within wider systems of professions and power. Beginning with the origins of the social sciences in German legal science, this article tracks the historical interactions between professional and academic knowledge to explain sociology's ajurisdictional condition. The theoretical framework and concept positions the academic profession in a unique position in relation to abstract knowledge, a relation that affects the internal differentiation of knowledge between and within disciplines and professional faculties as demonstrated by the case of sociology and law.

No abstract