Telangana: Companies make staff attend gym

Hyderabad: Proactive is the buzzword in corporate corridors. No longer content with letting the employee avail facilities, like a gym at their own will, corporates are introducing interceptory programmes that compel employees to participate in health improvement plans. 

The HR wings of IT companies, which mostly arrange the fitness and wellness activities, hire experts for one or two-day camps or on contract for three to six months periods.

Ms T. Vijaya, who conducts Zumba classes four days a week at a multinational company in Madhapur, stated that techies have started to give more importance to fitness over the last few years.

“With companies themselves conducting training classes on their own premises, many employees are making it a point to burn calories and stay fit,” she said.

Lack of infrastructure is making this a tough process. Tech and other corporate offices were not designed to hold fitness classes in large numbers. “Some IT companies have 3,000 to 5,000 employees. They have state-of-the-art infrastructure but there are no big open halls. 

“Even conducting a class for 200 professionals at one time is not possible. Hence cafeteria space is being used to give Zumba classes. Everyday furniture and tables have to be moved in the cafeteria for techies to take part”, she said.

With companies focussing more on the health of employees, health insurance firms, corporate hospitals and online diagnostic centres are also seeing an opportunity to reach out to these techies. They are queuing up to partner with IT companies for wellness activities, medical camps for eye, teeth, heart and diabetes etc., as well as blood tests and other screening tests for employees.