Over 1,000 State Workers Participate in Working Well New Jersey’s State-Wide Walk and Fitness Challenge

TRENTON, NJ — As part of an ongoing campaign focusing on public employee health and wellness, the New Jersey Departments of Personnel (DOP) and Health and Senior Services (DHSS) today launched the state of New Jersey’s first coordinated walk and fitness challenge aimed at state employees. More than 1,000 employees pre-registered to take part in the walk today, 700 in Trenton and more than 300 state employees at government offices throughout the state.

Working Well NJ, a partnership between the DHSS and DOP, provides the vehicle to educate and encourage public employee health and wellness. Through this partnership, a series of events and informational sessions have been held across state agencies to educate public employees on the importance of health and wellness. Today’s one-mile walk is aimed at encouraging public workers to incorporate a fitness program into their daily lives, and kicks off a six week Fitness Challenge.

“We're challenging government employees to take their health in their own hands, and to exercise just 30 minutes a day over the next six weeks,” said Commissioner of Personnel Rolando Torres, Jr. “A healthy workforce not only improves government services, but also improves the lives of our employees, their families and their communities.”

"We started Working Well NJ because it is state government's mission to make New Jersey a better place to live, and we can achieve a part of this by getting ourselves healthier.," said Commissioner of Health and Senior Services Fred M. Jacobs, M.D., J.D. "Just a small amount of exercise can help you lose weight, reduce the likelihood of heart disease, and even prevent or delay the onset of Type II diabetes by three years or more."

As part of the Fitness Challenge, each department is encouraging its employees to sign up and make a commitment to fitness. The department with the highest percentage of participants will receive an award from the Governor next spring.

A critical component of WWNJ is the development of alliances with some of the largest and most highly regarded non-profit health agencies in the country. These agencies, including the American Cancer Society, the American Diabetes Association, the YMCA Statewide Alliance, among others, were on-site at the Walk and Fitness Challenge to offer valuable wellness information to state workers.

In coordination with today’s walk in Trenton, state agencies outside of Trenton hosted simultaneous walks, including: the NJ Board of Public Utilities in Newark, NJ; the Department of Corrections in 12 facilities throughout the state; the Department of Human Services at Quakerbridge and Greystone; the Department of Transportation in Ewing Township; and the Department of Military and Veteran Affairs in Vineland and Paramus. Including these remote sites, over 1,000 state workers participated in this challenge.

The Walk and Fitness Challenge is the latest in a series of initiatives from the Working Well New Jersey Campaign. Since the program’s inception, informational sessions for state employees have been held across state agencies, on issues such as arthritis, diabetes, skin cancer, breast cancer, and stroke prevention. WWNJ offers state agencies a speaker’s bureau, a coordinated master calendar of wellness events, monthly e-bulletins, and access to the full spectrum of wellness partners.

For more information on Working Well New Jersey, or to set up interviews with the Commissioners of Personnel or Health, contact Janeen Lawlor at the Department of Personnel at (609) 292-6219, or Nathan Rudy at the Department of Health and Senior Services at (609) 984-7160. In addition, visit the WWNJ website through the DOP website, at www.nj.gov/personnel.