Monday, May 25, 2009

An innovative salary package

If Plastic Surgery Won’t Convince You, What Will? - NYTimes.com

The opening paragraphs in this story in the New York Times show how, um, advanced, the Czechs are when it comes to salary packaging:

PRAGUE — When Petra Kalivodova, a 31-year-old nurse, was considering whether to renew her contract at a private health clinic here, special perks helped clinch the deal: free German lessons, five weeks of vacation, and a range of plastic-surgery options, including complimentary silicone-enhanced breasts.

“I would rather have plastic surgery than a free car,” said Ms. Kalivodova.

Her reasoning is a model of altruism:

“I feel better when I look in the mirror,” she added. “We were always taught that if a nurse is nice, intelligent, loves her work and looks attractive, then patients will recover faster.”
(To be fair, the story notes that this scheme has had significant criticism within the country.)

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