Workplace Wellness Needs Assessment and Toolkit Revamp

California Department of Public Health

Project Years: 2017-2019

To improve wellness among low-wage workers in California, the California Department of Public Health Nutrition Education and Obesity Prevention Branch (NEOPB) hired Facente Consulting to update the California Fit Business Kit (CFBK), a toolkit that supports employers and their technical assistance providers (such as local health departments) in implementing worksite wellness strategies.

This project had three main phases. In the first phase, Facente Consulting conducted a literature review that included both a review of the peer-reviewed literature on worksite wellness initiatives and synthesis of worksite wellness resources from state health departments across the country. In the second phase, Facente Consulting interviewed two sets of key informants to understand their perspectives on how to improve the CFBK. One set of key informants included employers of low-wage workers in California, purposively sampled to represent the agriculture, hospitality, retail, manufacturing, and healthcare industries. The other set of key informants included subject matter experts—mostly representing health departments and their partnering organizations—familiar with providing technical assistance to employers on nutrition education and obesity prevention. In the third and final phase, Facente Consulting iteratively refined the CFBK, with ongoing feedback from subject matter experts and NEOPB, to finalize toolkit content.