To think fat equals lazy to prospective employers

[Oldfatbrenda]

I've been to a few interviews lately and I can't help feeling at a disadvantage because I am fat. I'm a size 20/22 for context. I think we larger people are judged for it whether it's conciously or not. AIBU? I also feel this because I'm mid forties.... So a double whammy.

I'm saying you're being ridiculous with all the excuses here.

If they can grab a sausage roll, they can grab/make a healthier lunch.

I know that, you know that and so does everyone reading this.

Otherwise every single delivery driver would be obese by your reckoning.

Kids sandiwches last from breakfast time to lunch at school. Some people put cool bag or ice pack with it.

A ice pack would probably last 24h unless really hot.
Theres a bakery here and loads of non office workers jump out their trucks there daily.
When office working for years i took a sandich crisps and water to work. I was 8.5 to 9stones. Every few weeks i would buy a sandwich or meal deal.
Im older now and weight has crept up a lot as basically at my height and age my bmr is only 1600 calories a day. Even though im average height.

Ive been told by 2 relatives i look fat. Even though i am in size 12 clothes. I do weigh 3 stones more than before.

Re jobs sometimes overweight people can look slobbish or frumpy due to the oversize clothes.
Also certainly ive found the bloating awful i can not eat for 24h but still feel huge!
Ive had average of either 1k per day or 1.2k and still bloated.

I know people who have bad backs from being overweight in their 30s.

In smoe ways it seems ridiculous employers can view employees looks before hiring. For age, weight, attractiveness.
My last job i struggled at interview. They were hiring 3 people. The men hiring went 90% on looks and hired 3 20-24yo girls. 2 or which were probably 9/10 lookswise. Yes one of those also had a degree. The other didnt really have any relevant experience. And was always very weak link in her team. The next round of hiring was a 20yo lad who looked like a movie star. And the one after that a 20yo woman who was extremely well presented so probably also a 9/10 but had no IT knowledge.
All these people left for promotions etc within 2yrs.

My previous department had more female bosses (so diff issues) but the people hired looked more normal.
I think certain interview styles lend themselves to easily bias by the interviewer. They can give points to whoever they like and it isnt relevant abouf peoples actual knowledge and experience.

Exactly I dont online shop so my consience is clear. Wonder about @KissMyArt

One less than optimum meal a day isn't going to cause obesity within the context of an otherwise healthy diet and appropriate portion sizes to give you the calories you need. If my only lunch option was a sausage roll or a bacon sandwich (as a vegan I'd actually go hungry, but that's by the by) then I'd take a banana and an apple with me and eat a healthy evening meal. Not ideal, but not impossible. I'm not saying this in judgement of those who are OW BTW, I get it entirely. But I do think it's important to differentiate between difficult and impossible, because its as bad to tell people unhappy about their weight that its tough, you've got to stay fat, than it is to make out weight loss is easy.

I never refrigerate my lunch, I used to work somewhere where lunches were stolen. So it’s just habit to keep it in my bag, in over 20 years I’ve not yet been poisoned by my lunch.

@Catandsquirrel

My comments are based on someone extremely overweight (not just overweight but obese likely morbidly obese).

the post wasn't about whether we'd favour someone who looked ill/weak but overweight and my response was directly in relation to that. If someone looked ill would I pass them up - probably not as some people do IMO look a bit peaky / ill and unless they disclosed a medical condition wouldn't assume they were ill.

Rather than ridiculing, how about thinking about why people make the choices they do.

Not all working/break environments are the same.

There is a distinct shortage of truck stops round the country. So if you pull up in a layby you aren't going to be able to go to the toilet then wash your hands. Eating something straight out of the wrapper suddenly seems a lot more appealing. If you are a tramper this could be all week. Not just lunch but breakfast and dinner as well.

People working night shifts, extended shifts etc tend not to make good food choices. But then what choices are available at 3am? A healthy salad might be a great idea but not feasible when your choice is what's in a vending machine.the

Most of my working life has been spent in and around factories and warehouses which gives me a different perspective from someone who has mainly been retail or office based.

I don't have these reasons, I eat healthily just too much.

Pretty much all of these excuses can be worked around with a bit of forward planning. If you know your break is at 3am and your only choice is a vending machine, take something with.

If you are tramping, stop at a supermarket etc every other day. My DH has driven across countries and managed not to eat absolute shit.

Plug-in cool boxes are also available.

There are always other options.

I get it, some people want to preen themselves about their perfect packed lunch. Go for it. But have a little empathy and think about why others might not make the same perfect choices.

The preening does exemplify the attitudes OP was worried about.

Theres no perfect packed lunch about it.

Picking up bread, cheese and/or ham, a pack of apples or tangerines and some veg that can be eaten as is, like radishes, cherry tomatoes, mini cucumbers etc is not hard or beyond most peoples means. If you can afford a tenner in mcds, you can afford something better from a supermarket.

Anything else is just excuses.

Agreed.

If people keep reading excuses for too long, they'll start to believe them, and convince themselves they can't lose weight because they're in the wrong job, live in the wrong area, have less money etc.

It's wrong and it's dangerous to convince people of this.

Agreed, just look at the current thread about weight loss injections.

Didnt see many petitions knocking around four years ago demanding that gyms re open and Maccy Ds close!!

Unfortunately, you are not unreasonable. It is not a 100% of employers but many do, especially if it's for physical jobs.

I haven't had many issues getting normal jobs, non physical; however, I've been told (by senior managers) that it would be hard to get a manager job being fat.

I've seen jobs where one of the managers is fat, they don't care and give you the same opportunities but when everyone is fit and attractive they won't give us a chance. At that job where I was told about not having fat managers, most staff were very attractive, handsome man, it's like if the HR women were hand picking them. Women looked regular/normal.

How would you know if they're covered in tattoos, would you get them to strip?

Is this because they are sicker due to their weight or because they are not given the same treatment options as thin people so do not overcome illnesses as quickly as thin ppl do who get treatment and then require additional visits to GPs etc because they are not given treatment in the same way?

From the article:

Nearly two thirds of UK adults are overweight or obese. Obesity and poor diet are linked with type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and increased risk of respiratory, musculoskeletal and liver disease.

That doesn't answer my question re time off.

Do those ppl have more time off because of those issues or because they are refused treatment and then not able to be back on the mend as quickly as thin ppl due to being refused treatment?

What evidence do you have that overweight people are 'refused treatment'?

What treatment? Can you give some examples?

I have an obese colleague who suffers terribly with the pains in her joints, but other than prescribe painkillers, there's nothing else the doctor can do, as she doesn't need joint replacements (yet).

Weight bias is well know and there are a lot of documented studies on this. Feel free to google.

Routine things such as antibiotics etc. Weight bias is a thing - Drs often feel they need to 'punish' patients. The same treatment options are not available to thin ppl as they are for overweight ppl.

Paywall.

Can you summarise it please?

I was 21 stone and working in a sex chatline office in 2001 Never had ANY time off sick. Then in 2002 i went on a diet. Lost weight far too quickly and developed gallstones as a result. Slimming World NOT a VLCD So badly i couldnt even eat solid food. Signed off sick had to wait for an op then lost my job as a result.

You made the assertion, you provide the evidence.