Employers told to swap birthday cake for healthier alternatives in new health guide

‘Healthy employees drive a healthy business’

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Nothing makes a day at work more wonderful than someone bringing in a delicious cake to celebrate a birthday or another special occasion.

However, employers are now being encouraged to consider swapping “cake days” for healthier alternatives, in a toolkit aimed at tackling unhealthy habits at work.

In a health guide formulated by Business in the Community in association with Public Health England, business are being urged to rethink the way they care for the wellbeing of their employees.

“Employers have a responsibility to provide safe workplaces that do not damage an employee’s health and environments that support healthier lifestyle choices,” the guide reads. “Healthy employees drive a healthy business.”

In a section that highlights positive practices that employers could put into place, the question of whether it’s necessary to bring in a cake to mark a celebration is raised.

“Begin a conversation about how special events (birthdays, holidays, anniversaries, promotions) are marked at work,” it said. “Can ‘cake days’ be shared, or healthier alternatives provided?”

Public Health England has clarified that it has not banned birthday cakes at work outright.

“Today’s newspapers are wrong, we are not banning cake,” it stated in a tweet this morning.

“As you can see from the original document by employers group Business in the Community, we simply suggest a conversation with staff on what works for them.”

Instead of bringing in treats with a high sugar content, the guide proposes offering free fruit and vegetables around the workplace for people to take at their leisure.

According to statistics sourced from NHS Digital, 57 per cent of women and 66 per cent of men in the UK were deemed as overweight or obese in 2015.

Public Health England has calculated that the cost of an unhealthy workforce costs the UK taxpayer more than £60bn a year, which is why it is crucial that employers take better care of the health of the individuals in their workforce.