A Chinese company bases employee bonuses not on performance, but miles jogged

There are a lot of things I’d love to get paid for at work, like the number of coffees I drink or the hours of music I listen to, but the time I spend working out isn’t one of them.

Still, one company in southeast China is doling out cash to employees for exercising.

Where in the world? Guangdong Dongpo Paper, a Chinese company with around 100 employees, plans to pay employees monthly bonuses based on how much they jog, according to Bloomberg. The bonuses may range from a pair of running sneakers to 130% of one month’s salary.

“A company can last long when its employees are healthy,” Lin Zhiyong, the company’s CEO, reportedly told the Guangzhou Daily.

Employees apparently enjoy the policy, and those who run the most are showcased on a company leaderboard. In November, it was led by an employee who ran more than 55 miles, according to LiveNow Fox.

But people on Chinese social media app Weibo have had mixed reactions to the paper company’s policy. Among the criticisms, some users pointed out that many employees in China don’t have time to run because of the country’s infamously long working hours, Bloomberg reported.

Satellite view. Last year, Nutrition Solutions, a US-based meal-prep company, said it pays its employees extra for exercising, CNBC reported. If employees attend a workout class before their shift starts, they’re paid for that hour, based on their hourly rate.

“Making this investment into them becoming a better version of themselves is a fail-safe investment,” Chris Cavallini, the company’s CEO, told CNBC.

But not everyone believes that paying employees to exercise is a good idea. These incentives can cause discomfort for employees or be triggering for those with a history of eating disorders, Refinery29 reported.