Contents
Hiring the Healthy?
Further Reading
A Weighty Issue
New Website Provides Helpful Resources for You
Contact Information
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Hiring the Healthy?
—Rising healthcare costs prompt some employers to rethink their "perfect" candidate
Not too long ago, the perfect candidate for any given job was likely the one with the best credentials: an excellent education, solid experience, stellar referrals. Now, another component seems to be gaining clout as an important applicant attribute: a promising health outlook.
Certainly no one walks into human resources with a wellness meter that's easy to read—the picture of perfect health isn't always simple to determine from the outside. For example, family history, high blood pressure and diabetes are often unknowns, both to the interviewer and interviewee. But recent trends indicate that meeting certain health parameters might soon become as crucial as passing common drug tests, and more important than an Ivy League degree. Weight-based employment decisions, in particular, seem to be creating a lively debate (see related article).
How is this issue affecting your hiring outlook? What are the ethical issues this subject presents? Who IS a healthy candidate, and how is that really determined? The following articles will give you a more detailed look at this touchy topic and may help you evaluate what could become very controversial practices in the future.
Further Reading
- Can Employers Alter Hiring Policies to Trim Their Health-Care Costs?
- Is Wal-Mart alone in discouraging unhealthy people from applying for jobs? Maintaining a healthy workforce is every employer's dream, but is it legal to practice discriminatory hiring?
- Countering a Weight Crisis
- America's growing weight problem raises serious HR issues relating to healthcare costs, wellness, recruiting and employee relations.
- Fat Fight Looms Larger as Weight Figures Heavily in Hiring Process
- New twists on the weight debate, involving two high-profile instances of alleged "size discrimination," have employers reviewing their hiring policies and exploring the legal implications of weight-based employment decisions.
- HIPAA Limits Curb Some Wellness Incentives
- Employers may be finding that giving out trinkets and gift certificates is not enough incentive to entice employees into programs that will lower their health risks. Some programs have now morphed into doling out $30-a-month discounts on health insurance to workers who meet health standards.
- Smoking Policy Sparks Debate Over Wellness Programs
- When a Michigan company advised its employees to quit smoking or lose their job, they believed it helped them to "take control of our health care costs." However, this method raises questions about what tactics employers can and should take to lower their health costs.
A Weighty Issue
Weight-based employment issues are in the news, related both to hiring new employees and improving the wellness of the existing workforce.
For good reason. Studies show an overwhelming correlation between obesity and health problems. But how fat is too fat? What is fair and what is discriminatory?
Some experts recommend focusing not on hiring practices, but education and encouragement within the existing workforce.
Ten Low-Cost Ways Employers Can Address Obesity
- Offer voluntary health risk appraisals through health plans and health professionals to obtain baseline data.
- Require vendors to include health food choices in cafeterias and vending machines.
- Provide nutritional information for cafeteria selections.
- Offer on-site classes related to nutrition and exercise.
- Offer "Weight Watchers at Work" or other special targeted programs to support employees.
- Create safe walking paths and encourage the use of stairs in lieu of elevators.
- Distribute health education materials.
- Sponsor "lunch and learn" sessions on fitness, health lifestyles, stress management and other weight-related "triggers."
- Consider an allowance for health clubs.
- Support community-based weight management programs and fitness resources, such as biking paths, heart-healthy dishes in restaurants and events.
Credited to HR Magazine and the National Business Group on Health.
New Website Provides Helpful Resources for You
The new NIHP website is designed to put valuable information at your fingertips. Additions include a helpful links section, a revised glossary and a learning center to help keep you up-to-date and informed. The easy-to-use Provider Directory remains a prominent and easy-to-use feature.
Remember, you can access benefit information on our secure site whenever you need it, 24-hours a day. Just click the web link under Online Benefits and Claims Service, click the Employer icon and follow the prompts!
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