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Comment by mynegation | Hacker News Reader

OK, I'll play the devil's advocate here. I am against free snacks in the office. First of all, it tends to be utter garbage: muffins, chips, cheese sticks, soda, sugary drinks, cookies etc. Has anyone tried to calculate lost productivity from health issues arising from eating that highly processed junk full of salt, sugar, and trans fats?

Second, snacks in the office might make more sense in the suburban offices in the places with extreme climate swings (think Schaumburg or Kanata) where getting out of office for a snack is an ordeal. In large downtown cores like Toronto or New York I would say a stroll for a snack is more refreshing for productivity than mindlessly eating chips in front of the computer after a short run to the cafeteria.

Third, there is this "useless perk" consideration. I'd rather get the share of money spent on the junk food and do whatever I want with them.

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Have you seen the snacks that most people get when they go out? Muffins, chips, cheese sticks, sugary drinks, cookies, etc. There's a reason why those same snacks are provided in the office. My office has plenty of healthy choices, fresh fruits, vegetable trays, etc, but the unhealthy snacks are by far more popular.

"In large downtown cores like Toronto or New York I would say a stroll for a snack is more refreshing for productivity than mindlessly eating chips in front of the computer after a short run to the cafeteria."

Well yeah, but you're not really making the case for no snacks -- that's why the company provides them, so you don't have to take that stroll. Though even if snacks are provided, you don't have to eat them, you can still take your snack scroll if you want to.

When I worked in a suburban office park, leaving the office for a coffee was easier than it was now that I work in a high rise - I just went out the front door, walked across the court yard and had a nice coffee shop with a good selection of snacks. Now that I'm in a city high-rise, waiting for and riding the elevator takes almost as much time as it used to take to get coffee.

The company could pay you a dollar or two extra a day (snacks are cheap in bulk), but would you really notice that in your paycheck after taxes?

Very good counterpoints, especially about tangibility of actual yummy things vs. unnoticeable increase. And kudos to your company for providing healthy options!

My case for the longer stroll was that sometimes it helps to detach from a problem and find a new angle with a fresh look. There is a reason why "walking meditation" is a thing. This may not work for all occupations but definitely works for me.

We go out of the office every day, and you're right that the detachment helps, but there are also situations when it's helpful to munch on something without losing your train of thought.

On the other hand, we don't have free snacks (we bring our own), and I'm not sure I'd want them - I fear the reduced selection would lead me to make worse choices :)

> I'd rather get the share of money spent on the junk food and do whatever I want with them.

That would be true if not for taxes. A meal at the office is effectively 40-50% cheaper than the corresponding paycheck increase.

Aren't perks for employees a taxable benefit? (Maybe the employer pays the taxes rather than the employee...)

I think the IRS for some reason hasn't clamped down on this benefit in kind. HMRC wanted to charge the employees tax when one big UK employer wanted to roll out free tea and coffee.

Apparently the CFO got pissed off over this found a loop hole and we all got 120 free shares that year as a way of going F You to HMRC

Yeah for snacks and company-provided meals I can see it being grey enough to be "meh". But I remember back when I worked at RIM in Waterloo, I heard that a reason they couldn't sell parking passes to their underused parking lots near the UW campus was that it would make the 'free' passes employees got a taxable benefit (and all of the headaches that implied). I guess if the perks can be taken from the office (phone bills paid?) that's an easy argument for taxability.

That is a fair point. I am a contractor though and from taxation point of view my remuneration and cookies are the same for the company - they just pay me whatever and I take care of my taxes. In Canada, they may even get some R&D credit on my pay, which you do not get for cookies.

I am all for power of wholesale bargains for good things, like cheaper gym membership with the corporate account.

This is a really good point. I would have never thought of that.

Chicago is not exactly rural. And don't try to tell me you're in Chicago if you work in the burbs. You're in Oak Brook, man, that's not Chicago!

Sorry, I did not mean to offend. s/Chicago/Schaumburg/g in my GP

hehe, i lived for a short time in Arlington Heights, I know exactly what you're talking about.

Seems like a good opportunity for a company that genuinely cares about employee health to make it easier for them to eat well by stocking the kitchen with healthy snacks.

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