It’s not just employees who are big fans of corporate fitness centers.

According to our 2017 Survey of HealthFitness, 92 percent of company HR leaders said their on-site fitness centers helped their organization stay competitive.

One HR leader said, “amenities such as our fitness center help us attract and retain top talent for our organization.” Another said, “our on-site fitness center is an attractive employee perk.” So, employers see corporate fitness centers as tools to help them attract the very best talent.

Why is the corporate on-site fitness center enjoying this renaissance?

A few factors are at play. Perhaps most importantly, convenience is driving this trend. Recent research we conducted found that 40-45 percent of employees who are offered on-site fitness facility access choose to participate largely due to their convenience, inviting environment and low- or no-cost membership. With today’s employee juggling kids’ activities, work, family commitments and other hobbies, this probably isn’t a big surprise. After all, getting to the gym is often the toughest part about keeping a regular workout schedule. But, if the gym is just two floors down, that’s a whole lot easier than a 20-minute commute.

Second, on-site fitness centers give employees a more productive way to manage their stress. And, employee stress is a BIG deal. The World Health Organization (WHO) recently called stress the health epidemic of the 21st century. And, it’s costing employers significantly. One recent study found that work-related stress costs U.S. businesses $30 billion a year in lost workdays (some estimate it at $300 billion). On-site fitness centers can not only help employees better manage stress with a host of programs but they can also help employers make a dent in those lost productivity costs.

Finally, the modern on-site fitness center is meeting employees’ expanded views of “fitness.” The traditional definition of fitness has historically focused on physical health. But today, employers are increasingly looking at employee health from a whole-person view, recognizing its physical, social, emotional, financial and environmental dimensions. Modern on-site fitness centers have evolved to address more of these dimensions, including more classes to meet the social dimensions of employee health and more access to health coaches to help with the emotional and physical dimensions.

There’s no doubt corporate on-site fitness centers are in the midst of a rebirth. And, I expect to see more employers introducing them in the years ahead as employee demand for this key benefit continues to surge.