We have an urgent request and an exciting opportunity to help shape legislation which has significant effect on our community. We are asking for your letters that describe negative experiences and outcomes related to corporate wellness programs, including letters from people suffering eating disorders and/or stories from treatment providers describing the impact these programs have had on their practice.
We Are Interested In Your Stories That Detail:
• Discrimination you faced as a result of a Wellness Program;
• Things from a Wellness Program that impacted your eating disorder thoughts/behaviors;
• A failure to inform you or provide you with "Reasonable Alternative Standard" policies;
• A relapse into an eating disorder because of Wellness Programs; and
• Any other harms resulting from corporate Wellness Programs
These stories will be aggregated and submitted to the Administration and/or the EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) to help inform and strengthen the employee protections that are currently in jeopardy due to Senate bill 620, the Preserving Employee Wellness Programs Act. This bill proposes changes to existing employee protections that would allow employers to ask invasive medical history questions including those about mental health and genetics. Also, it would allow businesses to penalize employees who choose not to participate in the programs with fines up to $4,000.
We need your help in flooding the EEOC and humanizing the reasons why invasive questioning, wellness programs based on weight metrics, Biggest Loser style competitions and punitive fines are a direct discrimination to the 15 million Americans with eating disorders – many of which are part of America’s workforce.
Please submit your personal stories, or stories of how your practice has been impacted by these outcomes, by APRIL 13, 2015 to Kathleen MacDonald at km@eatingdisorderscoalition.org or directly to Lizabeth Wesely-Casella at admin@bingebehaivior.com.
Thank you for your prompt attention and support in this activism. Your stories matter!
1 comment:
Such important work the EDC is doing! Thank you! I hear so many people tell me about their shaming corporate "wellness" programs. They are disturbing enough for people without eating disorders. But when I hear about someone who has or has had an eating disorder that is subjected to this stuff that isn't even based on science...I know they are doing harm. I'm gladly sharing this again on my social media pages.
Becky Henry
Post a Comment