Should you pay people to get thin?

You know how well financial incentives work when you’re trying to make employees wear their safety gear or hit that target to reduce your Days Sales Outstanding number. You can do the same to get your staffers healthier. The good news? There’s new proof you don’t have to open your wallet very wide to get the results you’re after.
These days, people are looking for any extra green they can get. What better way to get them to make themselves healthier (and lower your company’s healthcare costs in the process)?
It won’t take that much, either. People who were promised just $14 for losing 1% of their body weight lost almost 5 lbs., vs the 2 lbs. dropped by those with no incentive. That’s according to The Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.
No harm in trying
Keys to make this work for your own organization:

1. Take a tip from TV. Stick with a percentage, rather than a number of pounds. Those TV weight loss competitions have the right idea on this one. A 300 lb. man will drop more pounds than a 160 lb. woman. By sticking with a percentage of body weight, certain employees will be less likely to get frustrated and more likely to stick with it.
2. Keep the carrots coming. Rewarding after small incremental goals are reached will keep folks involved and interested. If the reward’s too remote, no one’s willing to strive for it. Spending $14 every few weeks or months won’t break the bank, especially when you consider how much more overweight employees cost you in benefits.