02 Sep 2014

Wellness committees remain relevant in the work place if optimal productivity is to be derived from employees, says Southern District Council secretary, Mr Mompati Seleka.

Mr Seleka said during induction workshop of Southern District wellness committee members in Kanye recently that a high work ethic could only be achieved if there were well functioning wellness groups that addressed the spiritual, physical and emotional aspects of the workforce.

“There are issues that crop up in the work place that could have a negative bearing upon the work environment and need systems in place to address them,” he said sighting wellness committees as one of the vehicles that had proven worthwhile in this respect.

He was pleased that Southern District wellness committees had not been left behind and had brought along church services to address workers spirituality.


Mr Seleka felt however that although the council is endowed with social workers, council staff seems not to engage them and utilise the counseling expertise that they have.

“We tend to think their services are for outsiders only,” he said urging employees to take advantage of such services. Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development welfare officer, Mr Donald Semausu said wellness committees have been established to ensure the physical, emotional, social and spiritual aspects of employees are taken care of.

He mentioned decreased health costs, reduced sickness and absenteeism, improved staff morale among the benefits that can be derived from a well-oiled and functioning wellness programme.

On other issues, Mr Semausu pleaded with the district’s environmental officer to consistently avail condoms and teach staff on proper condom usage.

He was particularly concerned that the female condom is not used as the male one despite the fact that modifications had been carried on it to ensure convenience.

For his part, Mr Phillip Gaborone from the Department of Occupational Health said the hazards and risks that come with every job calls for managers to prepare employees for challenges in the workplace. Ends