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Fat Women Need Not Apply: Employment Weight Discrimination Against Women

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Handbook on Well-Being of Working Women

Part of the book series: International Handbooks of Quality-of-Life ((IHQL))

Abstract

With increased obesity rates in the United States, there are more overweight adults facing weight discrimination in employment. Studies show that overweight women are more likely to face employment and wage penalties than their overweight male or normal weight female counterparts. This chapter discusses legal protection against weight discrimination and attempts to understand the attitudes associated with weight discrimination. Unlike other forms of discrimination, weight discrimination may be considered acceptable or justified by some decision-makers. However, employers who discriminate against individuals who are overweight may be unnecessarily limiting their talent pool. This chapter includes employment strategies for employers and job candidates that may help reduce weight discrimination.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Body Mass Index is calculated by multiplying weight in pounds by 703 and then dividing that number by height in inches squared.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Psychology, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Edwardsville, IL, 62026-1121, USA

    Lynn K. Bartels

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  1. Lynn K. Bartels
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Correspondence to Lynn K. Bartels .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Management College of Business Administration, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, Iowa, USA

    Mary L. Connerley

  2. Department of Management and Marketing School of Management, Rhode Island College, Providence, Rhode Island, USA

    Jiyun Wu

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Bartels, L.K. (2016). Fat Women Need Not Apply: Employment Weight Discrimination Against Women. In: Connerley, M., Wu, J. (eds) Handbook on Well-Being of Working Women. International Handbooks of Quality-of-Life. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9897-6_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9897-6_3

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