VW focuses on health: New check-up 2.0 for employees will start soon!

VW focuses on health: New check-up 2.0 for employees will start soon!

Volkswagen (VW) has big plans when it comes to the health of its employees. A new “Health Check-up 2.0” is scheduled to start in the second half of 2025. The company has set itself the goal of placing even greater focus on the health of its more than 400,000 employees and thus responding to increasing demands and demographic change. VW employees can already have themselves examined voluntarily, and since 2006 numerous check-ups have been carried out at various locations such as the Audi plants in Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm. Almost 200,000 of these health checks have been carried out so far, as news38.de reports.

“We want to detect and prevent diseases at an early stage,” explains Dr. Horst Neumann, Chief Human Resources Officer at Volkswagen AG. The health check-up 2.0 will not only include general medical analyses, but should also incorporate insights into employees' sleep, well-being and exercise. The company doctors see themselves as a supplement to the family doctors and take into account the entire reality of the employees' lives.

Comprehensive health care

The program will provide a one-hour, voluntary check-up that will be conducted on a regular basis. It includes a medical history, laboratory tests, pulmonary function tests, and vision and hearing tests. Optionally, fitness tests and a body composition analysis can also be carried out. After the examination, employees have the opportunity to seek advice from the company doctor in a conversation lasting around half an hour. “We recommend visiting family doctors or specialists if necessary,” adds Neumann. An important point here is that alcohol and drug tests are not part of the examination, which means the focus is clearly on prevention and health promotion, as aerztezeitung.de states.

In order to meet the needs of employees in different countries, the program is carried out not only in Germany, but also at international locations such as South Africa and Brazil. VW is also planning specific health promotion programs for common diagnoses, which is particularly important because the diagnostic data is only used internally and data protection-compliant handling is guaranteed.

Importance of health promotion

Health at work plays a crucial role in the success of companies. Inadequate health promotion can have negative consequences such as high levels of sickness, absence costs and even difficulties in retaining skilled workers, as gesund.bund.de emphasizes. Therefore, occupational health management (BGM) is not only useful, but also essential. The state supports companies like VW in their responsibility to promote and protect the health of their employees.

With the implementation of this new health program, Volkswagen is positioning itself as a pioneer in health care as the world of work continues to change. In an age in which skilled workers are desperately needed, such well-thought-out healthcare management could represent a decisive advantage, especially with a view to attracting and retaining talent in the future.