Taking care of our staff: how we pay for glasses or contact lenses for employees who suffer from eye strain due to the use of screens at work (visual fatigue)

Genesal Energy will pay its workers for the glasses or contact lenses they need in order to curb eye strain, a very common problem among people who use digital devices intensively and continuously.

The measure, a pioneering one here in Spain, is possible thanks to an agreement signed with Alain Afflelou, a leading optical services company that has launched Plan Protect, an innovative programme that gives companies the chance to take care of their employees’ eye health. This means that Genesal Energy workers will be the first to benefit from this programme that includes premium checkups aimed at assessing eye health.

• Workers will benefit from premium checkups and blue-light-filtered lenses to protect their eyes from harmful radiation emitted by computers and other digital devices.
• The initiative is pioneering in Spain and is being carried out thanks to an agreement reached with Alain Afflelou.
• Genesal Energy is the first company in Spain to join the Plan Protect for eye health.

As a result, people with eye strain will be offered a solution tailored to their profile and needs, such as glasses or contact lenses, which will be funded by the company. Genesal will also pay for contact lenses or glasses with blue-light filters or screen protection, designed to protect eyes from overexposure to the LED light emitted by electronic devices and which can cause symptoms of eye strain such as headache, red eyes, dry eyes, tiredness, or sleep problems.

Genesal Energy’s decision to sign up for Plan Protect is further proof of our commitment to protect the visual health of the hundreds of people in our workforce, helping improve their quality of life inside and outside the workplace.

Staff well-being: a priority

After signing the agreement, Julio Arca, CEO of Genesal Energy, explained that the measure is part of the innovation plan that the company is applying across the board to all its processes and departments, including the area of workplace health and safety. “The well-being and health of our workforce is a priority for us, as well as being a commitment to ESG“, said Arca.

“In the industrial world“, he added, “we’re very mindful of hygiene and ergonomics at our workshops, but we also care for employees whose main work tool is a screen. As a result, we see this partnership with Afflelou as a long-term initiative, with a view to preventing and minimising the impact of digital work on health“.

Meanwhile, Eva Ivars, CEO of AFFLELOU, pointed out that this type of initiative helps companies take care of their employees’ eye health, “which is fundamental due to all the negative effects of continuous exposure to screens, as they have an impact on their productivity at work and, above all, on their quality of life“.