Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, October 30, 1994 TAG: 9411290001
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: F4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LESLI HICKS SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS
DATELINE: SAN ANTONIO LENGTH: Medium
No, the 450 people who work at the San Antonio-based grocery giant's dry-goods storage facility haven't gone daffy.
They exercise at the start of each shift as part of an overall safety program at H-E-B's warehouse facilities, which involves about 1,800 people.
While the trend of getting physical by employer mandate has yet to catch on nationally, low-impact exercise has been incorporated for safety, medical-cost savings or recreation on an optional basis at several companies.
They include USAA, the San Antonio-based insurance company; Motorola Inc., the electronics giant; and James Avery Craftsman, a Kerrville, Texas jewelry retailer and mail-order merchant.
In what is described as a warm-up, the workers at H-E-B generally are required to start with 10 arm stretches and work toward aerobic exercises like jumping jacks.
``All athletes start with a warm-up and since this is very physical work, why don't we?'' said Lee Gerloff, manager of the center.
Group exercise satisfies a social function, too: camaraderie.
``If one of the guys is late to work, he has to do his exercises anyway,'' he said. ``And the other guys will razz them.''
The exercise requirement started in January, and it's too early to tell if it has reduced injuries significantly, Gerloff said. Even with more time, its impact still might be impossible to gauge since no one knows how many injuries the facility otherwise might have experienced, he said.
Nevertheless, he expects the results to pay off in the long run, the 29-year H-E-B veteran said.
``When the first thing you do when you come in is to exercise, and you're thinking about safety, you're going to be more conscious of it all day,'' he said.
Back injuries are the biggest problem for people who work in the retail-support warehouse. As ``order selectors,'' they must load carts capable of carrying two pallets of goods.
Most of the workers have embraced the program, said Cesar Soza , 29, a three-year H-E-B veteran.
``It gives us a chance to warm our bodies up. We don't go out on the floor cold,'' Soza said.
Gerloff likens the exercise program to any other that promotes safety. For example, the company has its workers wear safety belts where the job calls for lifting. H-E-B also tests for drug use.
Richard Menger, a management professor at St. Mary's University in San Antonio, said H-E-B is smart to add exercise to its safety measures.
``Exercise is a prescription for reducing stress and we all ought to be concerned with it because it's a leading cause of health problems,'' Menger said. ``When you're stressed, your resistance is down.''
Kurt Helm, an industrial psychologist with clients nationwide, said the physiological effects of limited exercise have fiscal benefits.
``It gets the blood pumping and it's something that will pay off far beyond their investment of 15 minutes,'' Helm said.
Although he's not aware of many American companies forcing the exercise issue, he expects to see more in the future. A large number of companies provide exercise facilities full of gym equipment, he said.
``It's a recognition that people aren't just cogs in a machine; these are human beings,'' Helm said.
``Requiring exercise at work is one of those things that we'll look back on someday and say, `Why didn't we do that sooner?''' he said.
Richard K. Schwartz, an ergonomic safety consultant, said he believes the wisdom of on-the-job exercise may have been spearheaded by Mao Tse-tung of China.
``He had them stop for a `gymnastic pause,''' Schwartz said.
Schwartz, who served H-E-B as a consultant, said the idea of exercise for injury prevention hasn't caught on because more research is needed on the economic ramifications.
But there's no doubt that exercise should be stressed by employers, he said.
``Even people who sit down all day need to do these stretches because they help the muscles keep from getting stiff. And that helps prevent strains and sprains,'' he said.
``People who work in offices have as many back problems as people who do very physical labor because sitting is hard work,'' Schwartz said.
by CNB