Workplace Discrimination For Weight In California
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The workplace is a common setting where weight bias and discrimination occur. Employees who have a higher body weight face weight-based inequities in employment including unfair hiring practices, lower wages, fewer promotions, harassment from co-workers, and unfair job termination.
Obesity can qualify as a physical disability under the Fair Employment and Housing Act. Under FEHA, it is unlawful to discriminate against an employee on the basis of “physical disability.” (Gov. Code, § 12940, subd. (a).)
Receiving negative comments or “health concerns” about your weight from anyone, including health care professionals. Complimenting someone on their weight loss. Receiving poor treatment because of your size or being denied/ required to lose weight because of your size in order toreceive a medical treatment.
Fat·ism ˈfat-ˌi-zəm. : prejudice or discrimination against fat people. Never has it been more socially and professionally unacceptable to be fat in Britain … . At a time when racism, sexism and ageism have become taboo, fatism is the last acceptable prejudice. Carol Midgley, The Times (London), 16 Feb.
The California Supreme Court held that an overweight employee could qualify as a “disabled” under California's Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) — and, thus, be entitled to employer accommodations and be protected from discrimination and harassment.
Weight stigma or bias generally refers to negative weight-related attitudes toward an individual with excess weight or obesity. These attitudes are often manifested by negative stereotypes (e.g., that persons with obesity are “lazy” or “lacking in willpower”), social rejection and prejudice.
Despite the overall lack of state level legislation, there are some cities in the United States that have made weight and height a protected category for anti-discrimination. These include San Francisco and Santa Cruz, California; Binghamton, New York; Madison, Wisconsin; and Urbana, Illinois.
In most states employees can be fired because of their weight. Michigan is the only state that has passed a law explicitly prohibiting weight-based discrimination and the Washington state Supreme Court has declared that obesity is covered under their anti-discrimination law.
Obesity discrimination is not currently afforded legal status as a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010 (EqA 2010). However, obesity-related conditions (eg, osteoarthritis), may be in scope where an employee is able to satisfy the legal definition of a disability under EqA 2010.
