At Whole Foods Thinner Employees Get Fatter Discounts

He may not be able to control the country's healthcare plan, but Whole Foods Market CEO, John Mackey, can surely try within his own company. In a bold move, the retailer announced its new "Team Member Healthy Discount Incentive Program," which rewards employees who are healthier and fitter with bigger in-store discounts.

Based on screenings for blood pressure, cholesterol, body mass index (BMI) and smoking, employees will now be eligible for an additional 10 percent off their groceries. In a company-wide email that was picked up by Gawker.com, Mackey stated that they have worked closely with their Scientific and Medical Advisory Board to determine specific discount thresholds -- platinum, gold, silver or bronze -- that employees will fall into based on their screening results. Those who rank the highest (platinum) receive a 30 percent discount; those who rank among the least fit receive 22 percent off. And because the program is voluntary, employees who choose not to participate still receive the standard 20 percent savings.

Along with other healthy lifestyle programs such as the "Green Trek Challenge" and the "Engine 2 Diet," Mackey wants healthy eating to be a core value of the workplace. "I encourage all of our Team Members to make healthy lifestyle choices and to take advantage of some of these new opportunities Whole Foods Market is offering."

The reason for all of this? Aside from having strong views on "individual empowerment " for the country's healthcare system as he wrote in the Wall Street Journal last year, Mackey wants to decrease the company's $150 million health care cost. "We believe this is a win-win program that will help both our Team Members and our shareholders." After all, healthier lifestyles mean healthier employees, which of course, translate to a healthier bottom line.

So, while some may argue that this new policy discriminates against smokers or people who are overweight, shouldn't we expect that Whole Foods, of all places, values health and employees who portray that lifestyle?

Read what else John Mackey has made headlines over.