Or rather "we give you the option to work flexibly and be present either mornings or evenings and still get benefits". My employer provides breakfast and dinner in the office, and I don't think I actually know anyone who is present for both (but there is a 60-40 split on breakfast/dinner). I'm sure it happens, but interpreting it as a requirement is just bad faith.
I don't think it's in bad faith. If an employer offers on-site cafeterias, catered food, nap pods, free massages, game rooms or other stereotypical tech company perks, they may simply be trying to improve employee happiness because it helps with recruiting and retention. Or it may be to get employees to subconsciously accept a lower salary because it's such a "cool" place to work. Or it may be symptomatic of a work culture that blurs the distinction between work time and personal time by bringing your recreational activities into the workplace.
Anecdotally, I've personally had employers try to use these perks to extract unpaid overtime from me, and I know lots of people in the tech industry who regard them as a red flag. Not something to immediately write off a company for, but something to carefully examine before accepting a job offer.
Comparatively, my costs have gone up now that I'm WFH instead of going into the office, because I have to feed myself.
I used to arrive at the office for 7am, have a delicious breakfast, a delicious lunch, and take a doggy bag to go for dinner when I left at 4pm.
While that can sound terrible on the one hand, on the other hand, the cognitive load of having to make sure I have food for breakfast and/or dinner was wearing me down. Stocking a kitchen and cooking for one is no fun.
Work took all of that away, and all it cost me was spending an extra hour a day in the office. That saves me having to go to supermarkets to buy food, saves me having to cook, saves me having to clean, and means I can sit at a table and dine comfortably instead of doing takeaway and eating/drinking on the go.
You might argue I've been brainwashed. All I know is that it's been months since I last got fed at work, and as great as the choices on Deliveroo are, after 3 months of this garbage, I miss having real freshly cooked food prepared for me.
