MONROE, Mich. (AP)--Mike Pixley can work up a sweat just by sitting down on the job.
You might say he's the lazy boy of La-Z-Boy Chair Co.
A senior studying aeronautical engineering at the University of Michigan, Pixley is paid $6 an hour to test a variety of La-Z-Boy chairs. In other words, he comes to work, sits down, leans back and then relaxes forward.
All day long.
"I think a lot of people think it's easier than it actually is," Pixley told "The Blade" of Toledo, Ohio.
During the summer of '93--his first with the Monroe-based furniture Maker--Pixley lost 18 pounds.
"You can work up a sweat after the first hour or two," said Pixley, 20, who reads to dull the monotony. He says his calf and abdominal muscles get a workout.
Since May 1, he has logged 200,000 cycles on one love seat alone. He averages about 2,800 deep rocks a day, said test lab supervisor Judy Fay.
"He'll do 2.5 million, easy, before we're finished," she said.
Finding the right slacker for the job wasn't easy, said Fay, whose ideal hire weighs 180 to 200 pounds and stands at least six feet tall. Fay tested about 24 people in the last several years, but few sat around as well as Pixley.
"I want someone who's self-motivated, who won't get bored, who sets their own personal goals," Fay said.
David A. Levinthal
