This is more troubling than seeing asparagus on my plate.
Many companies are starting to sound like moms: They’re pushing employees to eat their vegetables and go outside and play. And they’re not being gentle about it.
Personally, I prefer my mother.
Is this the caloric version of sensitivity training?
At retailer Replacements Ltd., 250 employees take part in a walking program organized by the company nurse. T-shirt manufacturer American Apparal has 80 loaner bikes, locks and helmets for employees and hosted an employee screening of “Fast Food Nation,” a film where the villain is the meat industry.
I wonder if they have a shoe contract?
Insurance company The Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. is among those using price manipulation in its cafeteria to encourage employees to eat right. It’s increasing the prices on fatty foods and using the extra money to fund a subsidy for healthy sandwiches, cut fruit and salads.
Oh, geez. At least they've come up with a cute name.
Such “Twinkie taxes” are now in place at 7 to 10 percent of corporate cafeterias run by food service company Sodexho, up from almost none three years ago, according to the company.
Not that I want to toot my horn too much, but I've been telling people this has been on the horizon for years now.
Mounting healthcare costs are driving the changes. Employee assistance company ComPsych Corp. runs what it calls “trainwreck exercises,” in which companies compute how long they can absorb healthcare cost increases before they become unprofitable. The first client that did the exercise realized it only had 18 months. Health insurance premiums for 2006 rose 7.7 percent — twice the rate of inflation.
I fear it won't be long before your employer will be making this types of "lifestyle changes" mandatory.
The next time you are in the job market, you might want to ask to explain their "benefits" package in a little more detail. Or consider becoming an entrepreneur.
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