Should employers, have a say in if their employee lose weigh or not?

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  1. Darknlovely3436 profile image68
    Darknlovely3436posted 13 years ago

    Should  employers, have a say in if their employee lose weigh or not?

    According to a survey  a lot of employee called in sick, due to ilness related to weigh gain
    what do you think?

  2. Frank Atanacio profile image73
    Frank Atanacioposted 13 years ago

    Not at all  that's just too much privacy invasion  good question though  Cheers

  3. Jonesy0311 profile image61
    Jonesy0311posted 13 years ago

    No one, not government or corporate, should have a say in the personal lives of an individual. If you are required to pass a physical test, ie. police, fire, EMS, military, or take a DOT physical then it is up to you to maintain your body so that you can perform your job. If someone can't handle their workload or is calling off constantly, then they can be fired on those grounds alone. There is no need to involve an employer in your personal life.

  4. Sam Dolloff profile image61
    Sam Dolloffposted 13 years ago

    I guess it depends on the employer.  I mean if you are simply sitting at a desk or whatever and can do your job well no matter your weight it shouldnt be any of your bosses business.  But if you have some weight restrictions like say you work in small spaces or need to be able to climb telephone poles or something then I suppose the employer should be able to have a say in your weight loss.  Again it is all dependent on the type of work you are in.

  5. profile image0
    Arlene V. Pomaposted 13 years ago

    Not unless your employees are actors or high fashion models.  Or if the job entails excellent health or rigorous physical activity and excess weight is preventing the employee from doing the job.  Otherwise, it's none of their business if their employee is overweight.  Yet, there is weight discrimination in the workplace for people who are excellent employees, but happen to be overweight.

  6. Sean Evans profile image74
    Sean Evansposted 13 years ago

    I gotta say I lean on the side of YES!  Hold on now before you eat me alive. 
    (No pun intended)  When you work you are part of an overall chain of effect that can either help or mess everyone up.  Lets me give an example.

    Slender Sally -  Slender Sally is healthy, stays active, is more than likely to be in a good mood.  She misses maybe 2 or 3 days a year and people are motivated by her performance.

    Fat Fanny - Fat Fanny is a good worker and completes her job and people like her, when she is around that is.  She misses 10 - 12 days a year, and many other days she seems to lack drive.  When she is not there the company has to scramble for the extra workload.  Which mean the whole team has to pickup more work, there by a delay in ouput.  This delay causes a butterfly effect through the company, causing the shipper to leave late.  The goods to get to the warehouse much later and before you know it, Million dollar multi-national sales for the country are forfeited and public spending goes down all thanks to Fanny..... Wow Thanks Fanny!

    (All names used in this example are based on coincidence and do not reflect any one particular person or group)

    So YES I think sometimes.  smile

  7. rob_allen profile image61
    rob_allenposted 13 years ago

    No way, it is a clear violation of one's threshold. Weight issue is always a private matter and it will always be. Losing weight is always on the employee's discretion.

  8. profile image0
    nikashi_designsposted 13 years ago

    As a rule NO... and far to volatile a subject from a legal standpoint. This could be a form of discrimination and could backfire on the employer. Once again, it depends on the situation, if the employee and employer are close friends. If the employee calls in sick more than average, then this is a legitimate concern and should be documented by the employer.

  9. TheManWithNoPants profile image61
    TheManWithNoPantsposted 13 years ago

    Only if weight is a bonified concern for job performence or the employee's health and saftey.  Otherwise, no way!
                                jim

  10. profile image0
    Saugasfinestposted 13 years ago

    I think it would depend on the position you were applying for.

    I can't imagine walking into a gym, organizing to get a personal trainer, and a 400lbs person walks out trying to give me tips on how I should weight train and keep fit.

    Not to be insensitive but i think this particular example merits serious consideration.

  11. daskittlez69 profile image77
    daskittlez69posted 13 years ago

    No, that is ridiculous.  Unless you have to be in shape for a reason, military, police officer, paramedic etc... then that should be your responsibility to be able to handle the physical rigors of the job.

  12. profile image0
    lavender3957posted 13 years ago

    I will have to say it is not the outside that does the job, it is what you can do with the education you have inside to do the job. Appearance has nothing to do with how you perform your job. I work with obese people and they run circles around me with their wonderful knowledge and expertise. They are what keeps the company going.

  13. supplies expert profile image61
    supplies expertposted 13 years ago

    Well No, you can't require people to lose weight, but you can fire people for calling in sick too often.  If that statistic is true that overweight people call out sick more often than physically fit people, wouldn't you just fire the people who are always calling out sick? Whether they're fat or skinny.  Either way, I think employers should take weight and health into consideration and try to create a discount for a gym for their employees or pay for gym memberships, or create a gym at their office. There are quite a few things you can do to help your employees lose weight without enforcing it.

  14. nancynurse profile image71
    nancynurseposted 13 years ago

    NO this is a very personal thing and a person has to get to a place in their life where they are ready to lose weight. Employers should have no input on this.

 
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