Angry Issues: Should Being Obese Cost You Your Job?
You know there’s just no getting around it – the subject of a persons body weight, whether too heavy or too skinny, will always be controversial. And recently I watched a popular news program featuring a discussion about whether or not a person should be denied a job interview, or even fired, for being obese.
The job in question was at a hospital and the governing board had determined that being obese didn’t fit with the image of health and wellness that the institute was trying to project. This was a specific case, but employers have also complained that obese individuals may miss more work due to health issues, possibly not be as productive as their slimmed counterparts and also cost more in terms of medical insurance coverage.
Now I’m not defending people who are morbidly obese and saying that it’s okay, because it’s not. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned it’s that the issue of losing and gaining weight is far deeper than simply saying eat less and exercise. And I’ve also commented here on the site before that the difference between a person with food issues and those who say have alcohol or drug related issues, is that you can see their problems more easily as it’s hard to hide weight gain. But how many employees (and employees) lead unhealthy, dangerous lifestyles that no one knows about because they’re not as visible and more easily concealed?
I’ve seen more than my share of doctors, nurses and other medical professionals smoking outside of hospitals. Should they also be fired or disqualified from employment opportunities? I mean they work in a hospital, saving peoples lives and promoting health and fitness, yet they smoke knowing that it’s a deadly habit with dire consequences. Which is worse? And of course when you start discriminating – where do you stop? Do you start hiring and firing on the basis of looks? Sexuality? Race?
At the end of the day I wish obesity weren’t an issue, but it is. And it will continue to be for many years to come. But when it comes to a job, I think employment decisions should be based on education, ability and job performance – period. The only justifiable exceptions I can see would be when a nutritionist or dietician is obese, or a personal trainer or athletic coach is extremely overweight. But in those cases the person’s body is a clear demonstration of their knowledge – and how they apply it. And let’s face it, no one wants to hire a trainer or get help with food issues from an individual that can’t help him or herself.
So I’d have to disagree. Hiring on the basis of weight is setting a dangerous precedent in my opinion. But what do you think? Should an individual’s weight be considered as part of the application process? Have you ever discriminated on the basis of weight – and why? Comment away…
| Print article | This entry was posted by Alfonso on April 20, 2012 at 5:07 pm, and is filed under ANGRY ISSUES, TRAINING. Follow any responses to this post through RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site. |
about 1 year ago
Let’s wish them luck when they go to court to defend this one – and let’s be honest skinny people aren’t necessarily more healthy – how many naturally thin people do we all know that are always in and out of their doctors office and taking sick days – plenty.
Instead they could work in some programs and better food at work for them – most doctors will tell you the medical industry is one of the unhealthiest surroundings for employees, horrible food, insanely long hours and loads of stress
about 1 year ago
Basing employment on an individual’s weight and perceived health is a very slippery slope. That said, I am disgusted when I see medical staff (or anyone, of course) smoking outside a hospital or doctor’s office, and I do raise my eyebrows when a visibly obese medical professional (nursing actually has the highest rate of obesity, above law enforcement…scary) struggling to do things like sit in an office chair to interview a patient or reach into a cabinet for supplies (until recently, I worked admin jobs at a local hospital and there are several nurses there — GOOD nurses — who had difficulty performing the basic activities of their job (being on their feet, moving patients, walking quickly, bending/squatting because of back/knee problems) because of their very large sizes. One nurse is actually too large to fit into one of the supply closets in the ER and would have to grab another nurse or one of us at the desk when she needed something in it. That bothered me a lot. My childhood pediatrician was a very fat, pot-bellied jowly man who remarked to my mother (when I was about 8 years old) that I “could stand to lose ten pounds.” My mother told him he could stand to lose 75, took me off the exam table and found us a new doctor. My children’s pediatrician today is a woman whom I think would fit the definition of obese; at the very least she is about 50 lbs. overweight. I think she’s a great doctor and a nice person, and fortunately neither of my kids have eating issues or are overweight, but if they were and she made recommendations, I’m honestly unsure how I, as a fit person, would feel about it. And one last example, the manager of my gym is a smoker and doesn’t hide it…she is often seen having a cigarette outside in the parking lot standing by her car. I stopped dead in my tracks the first time I saw her, seriously not comprehending that she could be a fitness instructor and manage the staff and operations of a very large, well-known gym and SMOKE where members can see her.
about 1 year ago
Jobs with a physical aspect shouldn’t be filled by obese people, but desk jobs, why not? I’m an autism support worker and it’s very physical, you’re not only personally caring for SUs, you may also have run after them – they have no sense of danger and will run out onto roads – they also may need to be restrained safely if they lose control. Most autism sufferers are male. most staff are female. so you have to be fit. even just taking them to an activity would be hard for a fat person, some of my SUs are very active, swimming, the gym, cycling, walking etc, you have to go along with them.
But I don’t see why a desk job can’t be filled with a fat person. It’s their brains we need in that case.
about 1 year ago
If they just considered BMI to determine fitness, then that would be a mistake. It doesn’t tell the full picture.
I’m slightly overweight by BMI. I can stand to lose a few pounds, but I can power through workouts skinny fat people can’t and my check-ups say I’m in perfect health. I’ve been close to BMI obese and the same situation applied. I didn’t look my best, but I was still in good health and able to move around.
about 1 year ago
In my experience, employment decisions aren’t always based on education, ability and job performance.
When I was chubbier, I was viewed in a different light by supervisors, managers, and I was passed over for promotion, twice. I overheard one of them saying “If she can’t even handle losing weight, how can she handle this project and the difficult clients?”
Since I’ve slimmed down, and I can fit my body into nicer fitting clothes and generally look better, my supervisors’ and managers’ perceptions of me has changed. Other than the physical, the quality of my work hadn’t changed. And I did get that promotion! Then I was able to transfer to a better job.
about 11 months ago
I pretty much agree with this post in that I don’t believe most jobs should have any discrimination factors. I have friends who struggle with weight and it usually isn’t about just being a gluttonous eater, more about psychology. There are usually a lot of deep rooted emotions at play that are hard to overcome. However, in some careers, body weight *should* matter, as you wrote. It should matter more from a realistic/practical perspective. A sports trainer, a nutritionist, a horse jockey, etc. However, the same holds true for other things, like eyesight. A pilot shouldn’t be legally blind. A cop shouldn’t be schizophrenic. My husband recently had his annual physical (he runs 3 miles literally every other day and is fairly fit for his age). The nurse who was obese started doing her speech on nutrition to him and he did get a little peeved. She then sheepishly told him that she probably shouldn’t be the one telling him that information but she had to per her job duties. It was awkward he said. I don’t know, we may be in an era where those in the health care industry really do have to be held accountable to health standards and that would include smoking and other unhealthy vices as well as weight management.
about 9 months ago
Employeers and insurance companies are not hiring smokers so why is it bad that they are discriminating against the obese? It is not healthy to smoke, it is a choice to smoke, it is not healthy to be obese, it is a choice to eat. It is just as difficult to quit smoking as it is to stop eating.
about 3 months ago
I agree with you Alfonso on what you said about “employment decisions should be based on education, ability and job performance – period.” Of course with the justifiable exceptions you mentioned above.
This subject however is always a tough one to call and is a very sensitive issue.