Chapter Nine Assignment

Wellness Programs

Some companies have instituted wellness programs to try to ensure that their workforces are as healthy as possible. This helps reduce health care insurance coverage costs. Some popular wellness program offerings are:

• Measures to help smokers quit,
• Workout rooms on work premises or subsidized gym memberships,
• Healthy choices for vending machines and/or cafeteria offerings
• Rewards for steps/hikes accomplished over the work-year
• Rewards for weight maintained or lost
• Body fat measurements
• Cash back for health initiatives
• Free flu vaccinations
• Etc

Such employer efforts appear benign at first glance, because these measures truly can produce better health on the part of workers. Still, ethical questions arise as to who the true beneficiaries of such policies are.

Please answer these questions in a one page double spaced response:

1). Is it the employees themselves or their employers who are the beneficiaries?

2). If such measures were to become compulsory rather than optional, would it still reflect managerial benevolence toward employees?

3). Do you see any ethical lines that are crossed because of these wellness programs? Name at least two ethical issues, and expand on your answers.

4) Have you had other wellness initiatives at your work other than the ones listed above? If so, what are they?