Controversial Topic - Opinions & Debate please!

In the US that is illegal. Unless there are physical demands that the overweight person is not able to perform (i.e. bus drivers need to be able to move freely in the isles to evacuate the bus in an emergency, if someone can't fit in the isle because of their weight they can't form the essential functions of the job) it is against the law to not hire someone because of their weight (just like it is for race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, etc.).

Using an office/IT type job as an example, if two people have the exact same qualifications and you don't hire one just because they are overweight, that is discrimination. Obviously most hiring managers won’t say that is the reason, but if they did or even hinted that a person was not hired because of their weight that person could file an Equal Opportunity complaint.

As for how does she have enough money to stay fat? I know it is often disputed that junk food costs less than healthy food, but if someone has $5 they are more likely to go get a value meal at McDonalds than go to the grocery store and get a loaf of wheat bread, a carton of eggs and a package of frozen spinach.

I am an HR professional, and this is not true. Obesity is not a protected class. This is why we are starting to see employers factor weight into the cost of benefits. I'm not saying it will never happen, but for right now this is not legally considered discrimination.

people will always judge based on appearance. much in the same way I'd be judged if I showed up for a job interview with jeans on, or had my tattoos showing. I don't like it, but I always dress up and cover any tattoos before going into an interview.


I can understand how a fat person could be viewed as lazy, unmotivated, etc. Being significantly overweight is going to throw up a few flags. Your health could be a problem at work, you may not be able to lift things, etc.

Personally, I'd take the one with the best attitude and try not to let my first impression of someone physically influence my decision, though I'm sure it would even unconsciously.

One thing that strikes me and I'm seeing a lot of is "how can people that live on so little money remain so large?" when the answer seems obvious to me. Often, people with low and very low to no income live on very, very crappy food. In the US it is quite common to find heavy and overweight homeless people because they obviously have no kitchen to hold fresh produce or prepare meals, so they live on fast food and handouts from stores which is usually crappy, refined, processed junk that is just barely expired, or leftover. I've lost some weight by really taking care to eat a lot more fruits and veg but I know if I went back to my old diet of fast food 5-7 meals a week I would gain it all back in a heartbeat. Obviously there are people that will never gain weight no matter what they eat, and people on the other side of the spectrum who have to work super hard to lose just a pound or 2, but overall people living on food stamps, handouts and government benefits are overweight because their diet is crap and even if they have a home, they might not have more than a bed and a microwave, maybe a tiny fridge, so their food has to be prepared or frozen.

This also ties into the price of veg, which is quite ridiculous for the amount of calories you get compared to say, a hot pocket or some kind of frozen or fast food meal. Part of the problem in the US is food and farming subsidies, but I'm not going to get into that debate. I'll just say that if someone is looking for work and overweight I would have the foresight to know that they might be trying to be healthy but are simply in a terrible circumstance and maybe someone with the exact same qualifications but is thin simply "won the genetic lottery" and shouldn't be considered harder working or having a better attitude.

I'd prefer to see a study based on beauty versus ugliness, and see how that influences people's attitudes when hiring versus actual performance of said applicants. I feel like people get blindsided by attractiveness and it changes their opinion of someone when they meet, versus just looking at them on paper.

Fat or thin it should be about what you can do. If you are qualified for the job.

The larger lady whos name was Jay said she had gone for 12 interviews in 5 years and had no sucess as well as only having GCSE qualifications which are the bare minimum in qualification standards for someone to have in the UK. She is currently claiming benefits and not working.

Do you think that it is right for the employer to judge her in this way and not give her a job? Do you think it is not about her weight at all but her lack of qualifiications?

Whether it be about her weight, or about her qualifications...she's had FIVE YEARS to address (correct) either/both of those issues and she hasn't. And 12 interviews in 5 years really isn't very many at all. This doesn't sound like someone who really truly wants a job.

Go to the store with $100 for food, for the MONTH. Come back here and tell me what things you were able to afford that would stretch for the entire month. Then think about how a large person can afford to stay large.

It's because the cheapest things to purchase are pastas, sodas, snacks. Buying meat is a luxury for many of us who are poor. I have learned that I can buy one large family size of a meat, such as boneless/skinless chicken and make about 8-10 meals around it. The next month, I buy one family sized ground beef and do the same, and so on each month with whatever meats are the cheapest in town that week. Lately, it has been pork and chicken. Sometimes it's steak and ground beef. Buy them, wrap individually, freeze. Plan a menu as much as possible. Learn what can be substituted for bread, such as I now use tortillas and flat bread. Both have less calories, more flavor and lend themselves to a number of different types of meals.

Pasta and rice are the two mainstays of a poor person's diet because it is cheap, it stores well and can be used as a side or a main meal.

I made a point of going off all pasta for two months and using brown rice. I am slowly adding in pasta again, but trying to find healthier pasta (whole grain) I made a point of going off all soda and sweets and am slowly adding them back in, using moderation and accountability. (I put it in my diary BEFORE I eat it to make sure that it fits in to my calorie allowance and macros.)

Now, five years later with no job and still the same weight, that is something else entirely.

I was discriminated against by a retail store. I was about 175 pounds at the time. They wanted tall, thin, beautiful women. I didn't fit the bill at all. I crossed them off my ever to buy from list and have never done so and never will, regardless of how thin I may become. It was discrimination, pure and simple, all because of weight...and my weight wasn't that bad for being 5' 6" and 30.

It is a learning experience to be poor and trying to eat healthier. Fruit and veggies are costly. I've researched and learned that frozen is near as good, as it is flash frozen. By using frozen fruit and veggies, I can make things stretch a bit more. This month, I bought fresh spinach to try to use in smoothies. I've discovered I really cannot taste it and just used it in my breakfast burritos to add a veggie to my day.

Until someone is ready to do the research and then make the changes, pasta, soda and sweets will be the cheapest things to buy and eat. It takes effort to go for the smoothies, fruits, vegetables, 100% juices, etc.

I know I need to add more exercise to my days, I struggle due to being in a wheelchair 98% of the time. I need to make more time and effort to include movement on a regular basis.

In closing, at the end of most months, I end up having only enough food for 1 meal a day. Yeah, really. I do what I can to make the food last as long as possible, but it doesn't always happen. I am fortunate this month, because a friend who was moving to Canada brought me all her food that wasn't going with her, so I have a pantry closet that is usually empty except for Toilet paper, brimming with many things. Things like cereal, soda, crackers. These are things I will be eating over the rest of my life, so I am learning how to moderate with them now. She bought me a bunch of canned fruits in syrup. I am draining them as I need them and rinsing with water to remove as much added sugar as possible then using them in smoothies to help stretch the frozen and fresh fruits, juices, etc. It can be done. It takes time, energy and ingenuity to figure out how to give something that has little value health wise into something that can be used to eat healthy.

Those who say they are tired of the "poor fat person" argument...I say, go out and live on just $100 a month for food, the amount that most states give to a poor person with no job, on SSI (Which is $710/month). I have to make that $710 pay my rent, heat, electricity, water, sewage, garbage, phone/internet and cell phone. It also has to cover my food, as I am unable to get food stamps at this time due to a huge mistake on their part they are unwilling to correct. I qualify, they know I do, but they will not correct the mistake THEY have made and continue to make each time I apply for food stamps.

You have just $810 to live off for the entire month. No cheating. Pay all your bills first, then use what is left for food. I am giving you the benefit of the doubt that you would be able to get the $96 in food stamps. See how far it gets you. It is not HOW MUCH you eat, sometimes. Sometimes, it really is WHAT you eat. I can eat one meal a day of pasta, soda and sweets, and have less than 1200 calories and gain weight where as I am now eating on average, two meals a day with meat in at least one, using rice and fruits/veggies to supplement and losing weight. So your tired, the fat person eats to much, argument carries no weight with me. (Pun not intended)

The internet and cell phone are what many would call wants, but because I am married to a man who is in another country, until I can immigrate, am a domestic abuse survivor who lives in the same town as one of her abusers, the internet, home phone and cell are necessities. I was able to work out a good deal with the phone/internet (I pay $100/month for both which includes being able to call anywhere in N. America, including Mexico and Canada.) I got a great deal with my wireless company that allows me unlimited night and weekends and the same N. America calling I get on my home phone for just $60/month) I use few lights, keep the heat as low as I can stand (Air in the summer is kept off as long as possible here in the very hot, humid south.) and wear sweaters and layers in the winter and shorts/tanks in the summer. I keep curtains closed in the summer day and open in the winter day to let in natural light and a little bit of heat (or to keep that same heat/sun out.) I go out to eat at the cheapest place once a month and normally get a grilled chicken wrap. This month was different, someone else paid, and we went where she would enjoy, and I did and I did eat more than usual, but also made sure I logged every bite on MFP. Because I struggle most days to make my calorie goal, I knew it would even out in the end and didn't stress over it.

Employers should have the right to hire whoever they want based on whatever criteria they want. Individuals should be able agree to enter into a trade of goods and services for compensation or not.

/Thread.




America.

Meh, i would probably think the same.

Then again... I always equate fitness and weight to self respect. If you don't respect yourself, how will you respect me or my company?

^ terrible person

Employers should have the right to hire whoever they want based on whatever criteria they want. Individuals should be able agree to enter into a trade of goods and services for compensation or not.

We'll have none of that blasphemous Libertarian talk around here good sir! :drinker:

i agree. burn all the libertarians and their voluntarism. we want forced relationships between people.

Weight discrimination is rampant.

I clearly respect other people's opinions and acknowledge that overweight people likely bring future medical issues to the table, however there is nothing that guarantees the thinner person will not have medical issues. If you were to substitute "man" and "woman" for every instance of "thin" and "obese" in your query, you would logically jump to the defense and say such discrimination is unwarranted and disgusting.

Factoring in someones size as a qualification for a job is, in general, discriminating and I say in general because there are many examples that could be made to argue an overweight prospect as an impossible prospect.

"Poor people" are not fat because they are lazy and poor, more likely they are undereducated and don't 'get' that they can make their dollar stretch further if they shopped wiser and had resources to do so. (It took me meeting with a dietitian who educated me on the cans and can'ts of shopping/weight loss.)

Also - I have seen a large share of "well off" overweight people, officially I would be one of them!

Sooo...they're not lazy, they're stupid. Basically you agree with half of what I said earlier then. Excellent. :drinker: