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In an effort to identify and
correct potential health problems
among its employees, Bamberg
Board of Public Works (BPW)
commissioners agreed to start
the process of looking into the
cost of implementing a wellness
and health screening program
for its 20 employees.
Commissioner Buddy
Sandifer, in proposing the health
screening program, said he had
spoken with BPW Manager
Bruce Ellis prior to the meeting.
Sandifer stated there were
“things” the BPW needed to
offer its employees at its own
expense, that would “probably
save us money in the long-term”
and one thing was health
screenings. He said the board
could set aside some money in
its budget to get the program
started.
“We don’t know what kind
of shape each employee is in, if
something is wrong, we can
catch it and have it fixed on an
annual basis,” Sandifer said.
BPW Manager Bruce Ellis
said after he and commissioner
Sandifer spoke, he started
looking into whether employees
would be interested in the
possibility of a wellness
program. Ellis cited other utility
companies in the area have
exercise programs for
employees and indicated that the
company’s insurance might pay
for part of the cost.
“The insurance could pay
part of that, after we talked,
we’re looking at what they will
pay or won’t, we can add the
rest,” Ellis said.
BPW commissioner Dr. F.
Marion Dwight stated that health
screenings could be a good thing
for the employees. “Annual
screenings of people’s health
could be good. It could
encourage people to stop
smoking and eat better," Dwight
said.
In other business:
BPW commissioners
approved the request from the
Bamberg County Soccer League
sponsored by the First Baptist
Church of Bamberg to use the
BPW property on Midway
Street for soccer games and
practice.
Manager Bruce Ellis
reported that the BPW “had a
pretty good winter” this year
compared to last year’s
relatively mild winter. “We had
some pretty long, cold days; we
sold some utilities this year, that
we didn’t sell last year, which
we must do to operate a utility
company,” Ellis said.
Ellis said that the company
needed to look into doing some
work on the warehouse facility
that was started 15 years ago. He
said BPW was flushing some
hydrants, turning valves,
(required by law) and putting
some taps in. “Other than that,
there was not a lot going on,”
Ellis informed board members. |
