The Fruits of

The Effects of Keeping your

Workforce Fed

By J. Max
Google’s Cafes
•The Googleplex campus in
Mountain View has 11 restaurants
and provides employees with free
meals every day

•However, recent talk has been

going on about cutting the free
Time Productivity
•Google’s reasoning for giving free
meals was that it was more cost-
effective than having thousands of
employees leave the campus, eat
lunch and come back
•Google also does this with laundry,
child care, and other activities they
consider “distractions”

•What they have not taken into

Needs Theory
•Employees have needs that they are
motivated to satisfy in the
workplace, starting
from the bottom and moving up

•Feeding employees meets two needs

on Maslow’s Hierarchy:
•Psychological – “My company provides me food
to eat”
Theory of
Reciprocity
•Research has not backed up the ideas
of needs theory in the workplace, so
why would it work with food?
•Theory of Reciprocity - “People are
willing to sacrifice their own material
well being to help those who are being
kind” (Rabin).
•Reciprocity explains deviance from
self-interest. Employees will respond to
kind actions by employers with
kindness
Affective
Commitment
•Affective commitment exists
when employees are happy and
intend to do what is good for the
organization
•Employees are more likely to be
committed to an organization that
they believe cares about them
•Since pay is expected in
psychological contracts, it isn’t
often perceived as caring,
Improved Mood
•Consumption of carbohydrates
causes increased levels of serotonin
leading to a relaxed state and better
moods
•Having consistent higher levels of serotonin
will give and employee a sense of positive
affectivity, making them easier to be satisfied
with their jobs
•Satisfied workers are motivated to
perform activities not specifically
required of them
•This is especially important at firms like
Nutrition &
Productivity
•Increased Mental Alertness
•Proteins contain the amino acid Tyrosine,
which produces neurotransmitters that
increase levels of alertness and energy
•Skipping Meals causes the body to
goes into Ketosis, or fasting mode
•“As the body switches to the use of ketone
bodies, it begins to reduce energy output in
an effort to protect both fat and lean
tissue” (Engler).
•As a result, individuals have decreased
Recommendations
•In theory, having a Food
Program may provide many
benefits that if properly utilized
can greatly help an
organization

•Two risks involved with free

food however is cost control,
which can hurt the company’s
Recommendations
1) Organizations should offer free or
highly subsidized on-campus dining
opportunities with controlled portions

•Allowing a partial over complete

subsidy will help mitigate cost control
risks, and controlled portions will
help mitigate overeating
2) Before Google makes the decision
to cut it’s dining program, it should
•Cutting the program could cost them
Any Questions?