Kicking Back at Work

For most people, going to work is stressful. For the workers at one Los Angeles–based firm, going to work is therapeutic.

Late last year Primary Freight Services, a shipping and logistics company, was hurting like so many other businesses during this recession, and the company was forced to lay off a handful of workers. Further, remaining employees had to deal with a shortened workweek. Chief executive John Brown says he lost sleep thinking about how the slowing business was affecting his workers and their families. So five months ago, Brown decided the way to cure his own sleeplessness was to reduce his employees' stress. He implemented a stress management program that involved bringing in a therapist and a motivational speaker every week for six weeks.

Brown didn't expect employees to fully embrace the shortened workweek, but what started as angry, tension-filled sessions about layoff and recession fears became more productive, calm talks about what workers could get out of it: namely, how less time at work could mean improving their personal lives. "While they do openly want their full-time schedule back, many feel a new level of peace in their lives," a company spokesperson said of the team (pictured below).

Since the therapy sessions, Brown has continued to think of ways to boost employee morale. As part of a team-building exercise for his Los Angeles, New Jersey and Chicago offices, every day, workers can take time off to play Wii Bowling against other teams in the other two cities.

Company-mandated video games and an in-house shrink to boot? It's just what the doctor ordered.