I used to work for a non-profit organization that assisted mentally
handicapped individuals. One year, the organization bought jackets
for all of the individuals with their logos on it. My boss (the
company director) took the liberty of getting up on a stage in the
workshop and handing out the jackets to the individuals. He was
almost finished when he pulled out a 5X jacket. In front of everyone
(including the future owner of the jacket) he announced loudly, “Oh
my gosh! We have someone here who is this fat?!”
A few weeks later he also came to me and wanted to know if we could
put it in the organization’s hiring requirements that you had to be
under a certain weight (I believe it was 250 pounds) to be an
employee. How he has yet to be sued is beyond my comprehension.
Being made fun of for being overweight isn’t one of our “protected statuses” against discrimination in the work place. Basically, the company can take disciplinary action for what he said, but the employee would not be able to sue for any type of discrimination based on comments made about his/her weight.
HR-101.
Apparently your company HIRES the mentally handicapped as well……
He’s not just the director–he’s a CLIENT!
Being overwieght, much like smoking is not a protected class. For example, my company will not hire smokers.
Unfortunately, Tracy is right. The only angle they could try to work is if the obesity is caused by a medical condition – then they might be able to go ADA on them…
Since when is “FAT” a protected class? I sure as hell wouldn’t hire any morbidly obese people. Screw fat people.
So…did you take his advice and drop some lbs, fatty?
LudaCris, you tard. If you could read, you’d see the writer isn’t the fatty.
It’s funny how not wanting to hire a giant obese person isn’t discrimination, but feeling uncomfortable working with someone who has gay ass sex with other men is.
While Otto is an utter moron, Dave makes a good point and actually, many companies have incentives for employees to lose weight. If a company doesn’t want to hire an obese person, they are fully within their rights not to, one specific reason is because it could cause higher premimums on insurance policies.
MOST of the time, being overweight is a condition brought on by over eating and lack of exercise. Sometimes it is a medical condition cause by improper hormones, but then medication and proper diet and exercise can cure the problem.
Yeah, so let’s cut out having babies or hiring anyone over fifty. After all, healthy young people don’t cost too much to insure.
It’s just wrong to not hire people for being fat (or smokers, for that matter – although I think it’s the companies right to not allow smoke breaks beyond the normal breaks an employee receives)
You were able to put down your Ho-Ho’s and Cheetos long enough to type this up? You don’t have to be ashamed that you’re a 5X. You are aren’t you? That you knew it was a 5X jacket meant that it was your jacket and you knew exactly what it was.
I don’t see the problem. 5X is pretty fucking huge. A person that fat would have difficulty performing basic functions like climbing stairs and walking about. I was technically obese according to my BMI before losing weight last year, and I only ever wore a 2X at my biggest. Having a criteria that hirees not be about to expire from the exertion of getting out of a chair is not that unreasonable.
@Bit
The OP doesn’t actually say that he/she isn’t the fatty in question. They only say that the boss made the comment “in front of the future owner of the jacket”. The OP might still be said future owner. Only a fatty would be outraged at discrimination against fatties. Everyone else (including me who used to be fat) recognises that in 999 out of 1000 cases being fat is a choice and is something you do to yourself (as well as being pretty gross).
wait so you (America) i country that embraces fatty’s and has fast food joints of like every conrner, is now complaining that they are bing discriminated against.
You done this to yourself America try opening salad bars instead of KFC’s and sushi Bars instead of McDonalds. Although for some of you if its not soaked in fat then you wont eat it.
You people are a distgusting nation and you should be ashamed!