Body Mass Index and Performance

A company announced a Bonus to employees who show their BMI -Body Mass Index -numbers under 25

‘I am glad I went for my workout today. I gained so much,’ I flopped on the chair exhausted.

‘You went for a workout and gained?’ Hubby dear asked. 

'I met a few people in the gym, and I gained so much knowledge listening to them.’ I clarified and continued.

‘For the past few days, the number of persons hitting the gym has increased two-three-folds. Today, I met Shanta at the gym, and she gave me an insight....’

‘Before you ask me who is Shanta? let me tell you, she is the sister-in-law of Mrs. Varma, whose husband worked with your brother in Voltas during the 90s. We met them in Darjeeling in November, 1995, when we were also holidaying, ’ I added in one breath.

'Whom did we meet in Darjeeling? the Verma's?  the brother? the brother-in-law? forget it,' hubby muttered under his breath.

‘OK. OK. Got it. Now, how did this Shanta increase your IQ?’ hubby asked.

‘She said that there are new mantras in the corporate world today- KRA and KPI. Have you heard of these terms? I asked my hubby.

‘During the 90s, the HR in our offices used tools for performance enhancements and productivity increase, like Quality Circle, Kaizen, Just in Time etc. KRA, i.e., Key Result Area, is a similar tool to assess the business success and progress. KPI is the Key Performance Indicator that helps them study their business practices and the performance of their employees. These are some new terminologies.’ He explained.

‘Thanks, Dearie. Shanta was throwing these terms often, hoping I would ask her, but I did not want to give her that pleasure, so I kept nodding. Anyway, without knowing the exact meaning, I got the gist of the problem,’ I confessed.

‘Why is it a problem?’

‘It is not yet a problem, but she wants to be prepared. Her brother's firm has initiated a program whereby an employee’s performance is judged by his/her weight loss over a month. Those employees who show a BMI of 25 and below will be rewarded with a bonus of one fortnight’s salary. Similarly, if all the team members show their BMI below 24, they will be given a fortnight's pay as a bonus.’

‘She fears that while that company was rewarding the employees, the manager of her company may use this index to remove employees from the job.’

‘Our company is looking at some excuse to reduce their staff. I fear they will use this BMI to give me the pink slip,’ I quoted Shanta.

‘I have heard the Police Dept. and the Army have initiated weight-reducing measures like yoga for their obese personnel. I think these measures are good for the employee,’ hubby remarked.

‘I understand the need for policemen and Army personnel to be fit and trim. Else they will be huffing and panting to catch a thief. In most Bollywood films, they are always shown reaching in the last scene after the hero has bashed up the villain.’

‘But what is the need for a software company to implement this rule? Is there any connection between weight and brain?’ I scoffed.

‘I think it is wrong to measure the worth of a person with BMI. It is particularly stressful for women. They are already under heavy stress (pun intended) to manage housework and reach the office on time. I am not talking of Covid times. When wfh (work from home) created more stress for ladies than before. They handled their wfh involving more hours on the laptop. They also managed their husband’s wfh, his demand for numerous cups of tea, snacks etc. and children’s online classes. Managing all this, how do you expect them to have time to jog, hit the gym or join a yoga class?’ I declared.

‘There may not be any direct link between body weight and the performance of a software engineer. But it will surely help the person concerned to be fit and agile.’ Hubby opined.

‘What agility is needed to sit before a laptop?’ I asked.

‘Shanta says BMI is not a scientific measure of the health of a person. BMI is just a ratio of the weight and the height of a person. Take the case of Mr. and Mrs. Vaidyanathan. His BMI must be really low- around 19-20. He is so tall and thin because he suffers from stomach ulcers. His wife is a happy, cheerful, healthy person but short and a little chubby, so her BMI must be 30+. By BMI standards, she is unhealthy, and he is healthy! Also, BMI is very rudimentary. It does not take into account the health issues one may have. Other factors that could indicate a high ratio e.g., Thyroid etc.’ I heaved after this long speech.

‘Hmmm. Dear, you know so much about BMI, I am impressed!’ he said.

‘Thanks, as I mentioned, I gained a lot of knowledge at the gym,’ I conceded.

’Two decades back, jogger's discussed CPI Consumer Price Index with fellow joggers. Last decade the discussions referred to BSE and NSE Indices, and now it is BMI-Body Mass Index.’

‘So, it is always some Index that is a hot topic of discussions.’ I beamed with my new discovery!

‘Good one,’ agreed my husband.

‘We had a few perfect one-liners too to liven the mood at the gym,’ I concluded.

‘Neelima, Shanta’s friend, listening to our conversation, chirpily added,

“My BMI report is fine. It only proves that I am short”

 While Beena grumbled, “Everybody is worried about BMI, while I worry about the EMIs”

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usha venkatesan

Started writing as a hobby post retirement. Now a content writer, blogger and author. Published story books for children as e-Books on Kindle and paperback. Won prizes on online competitions on varied topics.