ABA , PBS and Employment: Wellness World Fitness Center, Logan

There are many positions at Wellness World Fitness Center. These include Operations Staff, Sales Staff, Personal Training Staff, and Club Management. All employees receive specific training for their position. They also receive general training in safety, security, and other policies and procedures. This year, a staff-wide wellness support program has also been put in place. Staff members are encouraged to use the fitness equipment or take a fitness class before or after they work. Staff members who use the Center outside of their work hours at least four times per month are entered into a drawing for a $50 gift card. The staff members are asked what benefits they see from the wellness support program. They report that they feel better and get better sleep. Members of the Fitness Center also The members report they like seeing staff using the facilities because it “sets a good example.” The Center’s Director observed that reports from each department manager are being submitted on time as well.

Five employees from Operations staff have not participated in the wellness program.  They also struggle to get to work on time.   They typically clock-in 10-15 minutes late. These five employees often look at their cell phones and listen to music in the break room when they aren’t on break, which is against company policy.  This often happens during slow times at the Center. The Operations manager, the Center’s Director and the five employees meet to discuss strategies to support positive behavior during work times. They would also like to get them more involved in the wellness program. The employees report that their bus schedule recently changed and that there has not been enough work to keep them busy during their shifts. The Operations manager shifts the schedule so that their start times align better with their bus schedules. The Operations manager also adjusts who is assigned to which cleaning and equipment maintenance duties. This ensures that employees have a specific focus during each shift. The manager provides verbal praise when employees stay on-task during their shifts. The Operations manager also implements an additional incentive for these employees to participate in the wellness program.

Logan, an Operations Staff member with an intellectual disability continues to struggle at work. He continues is often distracted at work and doesn’t finish all of his assigned tasks. Logan looks at his phone a lot, sits in a chair and closes his eyes, and wanders around work.  This happens at least three times per hour during each shift. When Logan was hired, his manager met with Logan’s job coach to discuss how best to support Logan. They meet again to discuss these work-related issues. Logan reports that he sometimes forgets what he is supposed to be working on and doesn’t know what tasks to complete. Logan’s manager states that some of his responsibilities have changed. There are new procedures for doing the laundry and a new floor-cleaning machine has been added to Logan’s list of tasks. This machine operates slightly differently from the previous floor cleaner.

Together, Logan, his job coach, and the manager come up with a plan to support Logan while he is at work. At the beginning of each shift, Logan receives a list of tasks to complete. Logan learns to cross each completed task off the list when he is finished. Logan’s job coach now visits him twice weekly and provides direct instruction so Logan can learn new procedures and how to operate the new floor-cleaning machine. Logan’s manager tracks Logan’s off-task behavior and observes that his off-task behavior is decreasing from three times per hour per shift, to one to two times during an eight-hour shift.