Werner Schmid GmbH Once Again Receives Gold Rating for Health Management

In 2022, the Fulda Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK) awarded the “Healthy Work in FD” designation for the fourth time. A total of 16 companies received this award for “exemplary achievements” in health management, including Werner Schmid GmbH once again. WS has now received the designation for the second time and once again achieved the gold level (the highest possible rating). The certification is valid for three years; Werner Schmid first received it in 2019 and also achieved the gold level at that time.

As part of the certification process, the health management systems of participating companies are assessed according to the “salutogenesis” mode l —that is, the model of “the origin of health” (Latin: salus = healthy, genesis = origin). The focus is on whether individuals have resources at their disposal that can positively influence their physical and mental health. According to this model, health arises from the interplay of body, mind, and spirit. Therefore, the company’s value system and the concept of creating meaning also play a major role in the certification process.

The evaluation focuses on corporate activities that promote health and values, each of which is assigned to one of six areas:

1. physical and medical (for example, organizing health days),
2. mental and intellectual (for example, corporate continuing education programs),
3. psychological and emotional (e.g., employee recognition for work anniversaries),
4. social and communicative (e.g., the WS employee app),
5. cultural and ecological (e.g., support for regional environmentally-friendly institutions such as the Fulda Environmental Center),
6. meaningful and value-oriented (e.g., support for nonprofit organizations such as Perspektiva).

To achieve the Gold level, a company must demonstrate a total of 24 substantial measures across all six areas. For the 2021 evaluation period, Werner Schmid was able to demonstrate a total of 40 health-promoting activities across all six areas, thereby significantly exceeding the threshold for the Gold level.