Why did you offer physical activity to your agents?
Boris Gross: At the end of 2016, we were at the end of a difficult cycle of internal reorganization with reductions in staff due to the reduction in state funding. There was a recurring and significant subject of short-term absenteeism. The mayor (former sports journalist Karl Olive) was convinced that sport could be an important lever to improve the well-being of agents.
The challenge was to be on working time.
Once a week, agents have two hours (travel time included, i.e. one hour of real sport) for gentle and non-traumatic activities: swimming, aquagym, aqua-jogging, walking, Nordic walking, maintenance gymnastics, etc. To avoid the risk of accidents at work, we could not offer football or self-defense. These activities take place in our facilities and are supervised by our sports educators, also during their working hours.
The agent undertakes a 10-week cycle which ends with the arrival of a health, nutrition, sleep specialist, etc.
Did the agents buy in?
Boris Gross: We had organized ourselves to accommodate 200 agents per quarter. About 70% of our workforce (850 agents) take part in this “Poissy Bien-être” program.
We had completely novice people who took up sport, aquaphobes who learned to swim, non-athletes who were a little overweight… Agents, especially women, did not necessarily have time to do sport out of work.
It was also very beneficial in terms of social cohesion and knowledge of colleagues: category A, B and C agents do activities together, a department manager can go for a walk with a gardener. Communication at work is more fluid when we walk for an hour together in the forest than when we exchange emails.
What about your absenteeism reduction target?
Boris Gross: From the first year, this enabled us to save 750 days of absenteeism, or the equivalent of three shifts. This represents 100,000 euros out of an expenditure of 1.5 million euros. 40% of these savings were reinvested in improving workstations (armchairs, footrests, larger screens, etc.)
We also now welcome the agents of the hospital center. This has also allowed our sports educators to develop their skills so that they can provide archery lessons, for example. We inspired other local authorities in France but also in Belgium.
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