AUSTIN, Texas—Whole Foods Market Inc. will start a program that gives higher discounts to employees who maintain good health, reports Bloomberg. Workers who have good blood pressure, cholesterol levels and body-mass index (BMI) and those who do not smoke will receive discounts of 30 percent in stead of the normal 20-percent employee discount, chief executive officer John Mackey said in a Nov. 16 telephone interview with Bloomberg. The program is voluntary and begins in January. Mackey said he hopes the change will reduce costs for the company.
As part of the program, Bloomberg reports mobile laboratories will travel to Whole Foods stores to perform health test, and the company will hold in-store contests to increase employee motivation. Whole Foods already offers an immersion program for employees considered high-risk due to obesity, type 2 diabetes or other health issues. Mackey said the company pays “several thousand dollars” for each individual to work five-to-10 days with one of four U.S. doctors and more than 100 people have participated.