Preview

Weight: Hiring and Career Success in America 


Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
6646 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Weight: Hiring and Career Success in America 

Running
Head:
WEIGHT: HIRING AND CAREER SUCCESS IN AMERICA 


“SKINNY PEOPLE HAVE IT ALL” Weight: A Deciding Factor for Hiring and Career Success in America Student: Dahlia Kelada University of Houston - Victoria

WEIGHT: HIRING AND CAREER SUCCESS IN AMERICA Abstract One would expect that when applying for a job, a hiring manager’s decision would be based on a candidate’s qualifications, skill set, potential, and a pleasing personality that would likely fit the norms of the organizational culture. In the United States, however, there is no existing federal legislation to protect obese individuals from weight-based discrimination. With the exception of Michigan, no other states have laws specifically in place for obesity discrimination. While this paper primarily represents findings in the United States, it can be representative of weight discrimination throughout the world. While it is expected that hiring managers are aware of discrimination laws and human resources best practices; education, skill, capabilities and personality come second to a person’s first impression — their physical appearance.

2


WEIGHT: HIRING AND CAREER SUCCESS IN AMERICA “SKINNY PEOPLE HAVE IT ALL” Weight: A Deciding Factor for Hiring and Career Success in America

3


The American Disabilities Act forbids discrimination with regard to employment, including hiring, firing, pay, job assignments, promotion, layoff, training, fringe benefits, and any other condition of employment (ADA, 1990). The U.S. Civil Rights Act further prohibits discrimination for non job-related factors such as age, gender, race, color, national origin and religion (CRA, 1964). Most people have heard of or experienced some degree of sexual or racial discrimination, and more recently religious intolerance. Through suggestive media messages and various cultural, and sociological norms, being “skinny” has been engrained in American society as being synonymous with “beautiful” or “good.” Ironically, about



References: Alvarez, F. P., & Soltis, M. J. (2006). Preventive medicine: Employee wellness programs are prone to legal maladies that require careful monitoring. HRMagazine, 5, 105–109. 22 Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 (1991), Pub WEIGHT: HIRING AND CAREER SUCCESS IN AMERICA between race and gender. Gender Issues. Cawley, J. (2004). "The Impact of Obesity on Wages." Journal of Human Resources, 39(2): 452-74. WEIGHT: HIRING AND CAREER SUCCESS IN AMERICA Heihnan, M.E. (2001). Description and prescription: How gender stereotypes prevent women’s ascent up the organizational ladder. Journal of Social Issues, 57, 657674.

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In her essay, "Too Close to the Bone: The Historical Context for Women's Obsession with Slenderness", Roberta Seid explores the ever-changing standards Americans hold for women's bodies. She compares our obsession with thinness to a religion. If we follow the rules of the religion, even if those rules resemble a sickness, we will live long, happy, healthy lives. If we do not, we are certainly destined to failure.…

    • 641 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Hooters Study Case

    • 893 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Although known for its spicy chicken wings and its mascot, Hooters has, for more than 27 years, been represented by its attractive, beautiful Hooters Girls. Recently, the company has been facing a lawsuit raised by two of its waitresses in Michigan, Cassandra Smith and Leeanne Convery, who got fired following a gain of weight. The two girls are suing the company for discrimination. Many questions arises from such a lawsuit. Indeed, is being fired for being too heavy akin to being fired because of age, religion, sex, color, or national origin ? Is Hooters’ action illegal under state and federal law ? Is bona fide occupational qualification a good defense for Hooters ? Since Leeanne Convery was pregnant and has had problems to maintain her weight, could she possibly have a legal case according to the Americans with Disability Act ?…

    • 893 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In “Reaching the Slender Body” Susan Bordo deeply analyzes the cultural, psychological, and gender factors that influence body image in the modern era, including the underlying manifestation of power over the self and changing cultural attitudes. There is no denying that humans prefer ascetic beauty just as bees are attracted to vibrant flowers which is why some people believe a warped version of the good life is to achieve societal standards of beauty which in turn is subliminally achieving virtues. The cost is often times one’s physical and mental health as well as an obsessive condemnation of everything that is “imperfect” of a person. In reality, gender norms and societal perceptions change what is “the idea body type” therefore achieving it is like chasing the wind. In today’s culture “slimness” is translated by some as being the tangible…

    • 633 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Through my reading and interpretation of this essay, I’ve come to realize that there will always be discrimination because of how a person looks, acts, and presents themselves, but I don’t think there should be a reason for individuals to get so distraught over the issue. Although looks and physical appearance shouldn’t be something one person should judge another over, I firmly believe there are certain standards for particular situations, and we, as people, should come to understand that. When Rhode brought forward the issue with the waitress being denied a larger uniform due to health issues, I felt sorry for her, almost to the point of pity. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that the casino, just like any other business, had a certain image to uphold, and they had a certain standard for the way their employees should look and portray themselves. And even though she had a legitimate reason why she gained some weight, the waitress signed a contract with the casino which required her to keep an “hourglass figure” (247).…

    • 550 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    In Amanda Spake’s article, “Rethinking Weight”, and Daniel Heimpel’s article “Who Says Americans are Fat?”, the authors discuss underlying issues concerning weight, analyzing the the risks of obesity. They go beyond these risks to examine society’s perception of what is and isn’t obese to discuss where these problems begin and how we should go about ending them. Using facts and large amounts of data, these authors covey their positions in a logical and empirical manner, while at times weaving in their own opinions to persuade readers one way to the other. Although “Rethinking Weight” by Amanda Spake seems to share similar concerns and ideas with “Who Says Americans are Fat?” by Daniel Heimpel, there are significant differences…

    • 1106 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the 19th century, many American cities banned public appearances by "unsightly" individuals. A Chicago ordinance was typical: "Any person who is diseased, maimed, mutilated, or in any way deformed, so as to be an unsightly or disgusting subject . . . shall not . . . expose himself to public view, under the penalty of a fine of $1 for each offense." Although the government is no longer in the business of enforcing such discrimination, it still allows businesses, schools and other organizations to indulge their own prejudices. Over the past half-century, the United States has expanded protections against discrimination to include race, religion, sex, age, disability and, in a growing number of jurisdictions, sexual orientation. Yet bias based on appearance remains perfectly permissible in all but one state and six cities and counties. Across the rest of the country, looks are the last bastion of acceptable bigotry. We all know that appearance matters, but the price of prejudice can be steeper than we often assume. In Texas in 1994, an obese woman was rejected for a job as a bus driver when a company doctor assumed she was not up to the task after watching her, in his words, "waddling down the hall." He did not perform any agility tests to determine whether she was, as the company would later claim, unfit to evacuate the bus in the event of an accident.…

    • 1746 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Rhetorical Analysis

    • 648 Words
    • 3 Pages

    During the recent decades, there has been a growing debate over what role that businesses should play when it comes to the increasing obesity levels in the United States of America. The prevalence of obesity has been on the rise in America for several decades now. Most people have attributed the increase of obesity to two reasons: people are consuming high-fat and high-calories foods, and people are consuming a greater number of calories than they are burning off. Kathleen Seiders and Leonard Berry are business professors at Boston College and Texas A&M University, respectively. In December 2007, they published the article in the MIT Sloan Management Review titled, “Should Business Care About Obesity?”. The intended audience of this article includes business leaders, company executives, and entrepreneurs, all of whom the authors are attempting to persuade. In the article, Seiders and Berry argue that business leaders should seek to lessen obesity rates in America. Businesses should be…

    • 648 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    discrimination

    • 534 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In the articles "Discrimination At Large" by Jennifer Coleman and "Ok, So I'm Fat" by Neil Steinberg, both authors discuss the battle of being overweight and the discrimination they experienced because of it.…

    • 534 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Obesity Persuasive Speech

    • 433 Words
    • 2 Pages

    9. Obesity halts dreams and aspirations. Those who have always wanted to follow a military career or a life of glamour and beauty often find that these professions do not look kindly on those who cannot pass physical tests or can't fit on screen, literally and figuratively.…

    • 433 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Cited: Elkins, J. Teri, Phillips S. James, and Robert Konopaske. "Evaluating Gender Discrimination Claims: Is There a Gender Similarity Bias?" Sex Roles 44.1/2 (2001): 1-15. Print.…

    • 599 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Best Essays

    Low, K. G.; Charanasomboon, S.; Brown, C.; Hiltunen, G.; Long, K.; Reinhalter, K.; Jones, H. (2003). "Internalization of the Thin Ideal, Weight and Body Image Concerns". Social Behavior and Personality: an international journal 31: 81–89.…

    • 258 Words
    • 1 Page
    Best Essays
  • Better Essays

    4. Ingram, Scott. Want fries with that?; obesity and the supersizing of America. New York, New York, 2005. Print.…

    • 2502 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    First, stigmatized individuals experience discrimination, either blatant or subtle. Second, in order to experience this discrimination, they must be aware that they are devalued in the eyes of others. The third aspect of social stigma is that stigmatized individuals are likely to be aware of the stereotypes that others hold of their social groups. Finally, they may feel uncertainty about the causes of events in their lives. They may be uncertain if negative outcomes come from lack of worthiness or if they are due to discrimination and if positive events come from another person’s sympathy for their stigmatized status or their desire to avoid the effects of discrimination (Crocker, 2000). More specifically, weight stigma is referred to as the ‘negative weight-related attitudes and beliefs that are manifested by stereotypes, rejection and prejudice towards individuals because they are overweight or obese’ (Puhl, Moss-Racusin, Schwartz, & Brownell, 2007, p. 347). Obesity stigma is present in various settings including home life, workplaces, educational institutions, medical institutions, and other social environments (Puhl & Brownell, 2001). Overweight individuals are regarded as less qualified for jobs (Vartanian, Pinkus and Smyth, 2014), which can have detrimental effects on self esteem. Furthermore, obesity stigma is especially pervasive within North American societies and has consequences to one’s…

    • 683 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The United States has seen a number of culturally diverse immigrants arrive by different means. As can be noted from the recent presidential candidate campaigns, Donald Trump has proposed mass deportation of illegal immigrants. Mass deportation would be illogical due to the inevitable separation of families, cultural strain in our society, and the detrimental effects it would have in our economy.…

    • 943 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Law enforcement officers are authorized by federal, state, and local lawmakers to arrest and confine persons suspected of crimes. The judicial system is authorized to confine persons convicted of crimes. This confinement, whether before or after a criminal conviction, is called incarceration.…

    • 10538 Words
    • 43 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics