for thinking everyone at work should not have to pick up the slack because a colleague is too overweight to do her share?

[Twigggy]

I work in a job where some of the tasks involve lifting carrying and moving things. It is not all heavy labour but everyone is expected to take turns so the workload is fair.

One of my colleagues has been with the company for years. Over time she has gained a lot of weight. She is now morbidly obese and is very open about the fact that she eats too much and does not have any medical condition causing it. She even jokes about it sometimes.

The issue is that as her weight has increased her ability to do the physical parts of the job has decreased. Management have quietly stopped assigning her any of the lifting or carrying tasks. That means the rest of us have to do more to cover her share which can be exhausting especially on busy days.

A few of us have raised this with our manager and HR but both said there is nothing they can do and that we need to be sensitive. Essentially we were told to just keep doing the extra work so we do not upset her.

No one has said anything to her directly because it feels like a sensitive topic and I do not want to be accused of being discriminatory. But it is frustrating that the burden is falling on the rest of us for something that is not due to illness or injury and that she openly admits is her own lifestyle choice.

I am starting to feel resentful. AIBU for thinking this is not fair?

If it was because of an illness or injury then fair enough but being a lifestyle choice then no yanbu

Marvellous
we haven't had a fatty bashing thread for oooh I dunno at least five minutes

It's a management issue, regardless of why you think tasks are being reassigned it's your employers job to manage resources so no point in being resentful towards your colleague. I'd also caution that they may know something you don't know about her health or capacity which means they need to reassign tasks but can't share her personal information.

🙄

Of course it’s not fair. This is why managers exist but many managers seem to be incapable of managing these days.

I’d be looking for another job elsewhere.

What do you want them do to, fire her because she gained weight?

Ask yourself this @Twigggy

If the person concerned had been declared with a mental health issue or something non-physical, would you still complain?

If they had a temporary stroke, would you complain?

Are you basically saying that everyone who works where you work, has to be able-bodied (so to speak) and if they lose the ability temporary or otherwise, they should be punished or somehow corrected so they can regain that ability?

I am slim, size 10, fit , run marathons, but I would NEVER take this perspective personally, it doesn't make sense to me.

Well said, I think this is the main issue - they may well know there's a deeper health issue but they're not going to say.

The person affected may be joking about it because they're using humour as a defence mechanism rather than "I don't give a fig about my weight" kind of approach.

Yup. Manager issue. If too much lifting and carrying is impacting your health then talk to them about how they manage that. How her work is allocated is neither here nor there.

Double post, deleted.

It’s not fatty bashing. It’s not doing the job you are being paid to do which is having a detrimental effect on your colleagues.

It is a management issue. There will be nothing in your contract saying you don’t have to go more than your fair share of the lifting and shifting though. Personally I’d consider looking for a new job.

Overeating can come about due to many factors.
She will make jokes about it as a deflection.
You don't know her circumstances at home etc.

It should have been addressed during performance reviews. If it was medical, then HR/occupational health should be involved and asking how the colleague needs support. Someone shouldn't be left to not be able to carry out their job role.
I see eating to her state, as being part of poor MH which is why she's using humour to excuse it. It needs taking back to management. She and everyone else needs this to be sorted out.

She may be laughing it off on the outside, but she could easily have an underlying medical cause for her weight gain, that may also impact the more physical aspects of the job.
She doesn't have to make her medical history public knowledge. It sounds as though the management team may have this knowledge.

Be thankful that you are doing the extra physical lifting and moving about.
Follow safe lifting guides; you will not be injured but you will stay fit and trim.

If you want to vent, make it a happy vent.
Tell Fat Colleague that you are pleased to be doing her fair share of the lifting because it is keeping you fit. She should find that a laugh, given that she jokes about her weight.

Realistically, privately, the managers should be asking FC to take a health check and to engage a dietition and a trainer so she stays healthy enough to keep working.

Genuine question - is “morbid obesity” classed as a disability? In which case “reasonable adjustments” have to be made.

What do you think should happen ? Maybe be sacked for being fat or sent on a healthy eating course maybe given free weightloss medication so she can lift something occasionally.

Yep, clearly it's a management issue. Are you all in a union? It looks like you all need to take this further if management and HR are refusing to engage. One employee becoming unable to do the tasks should not automatically mean that the tasks are split between the remaining people.

Directly confronting the individual staff member about her health and work capacity is definitely not the right way to address this situation.

Exactly. Its so clear what your aim is here, op

You dont know this woman's personal circumstances, and if I was this woman, I wouldnt dare tell you what's going on in my personal life to cause weight gain. Stop being horrible.

Yabvu

I’m interested in this.

How much of this lifting and carrying is there?

Is it a physical job or not?

Is there lifting every day? Several times a day?

Is it in the job description?

She could have gained weight for so many different reasons, none of which are your business.

YABU - she does have a medical issue. She is over eating to the point she is obese, she has an eating disorder. It doesn’t matter if it’s undiagnosed or if she doesn’t recognise that yet.

There is no such thing as a greedy obese person, it’s food addiction / eating disorder.

Likely to depend on the underlying reasons @HotTiredDog Obesity can be a symptom of something or caused by something else, eg the meds for the underlying health or disability issue.

The reason underlying the weight issue might well be a disability - the OP doesn't know her colleagues health background, it's entirely possible there's something causing it that her employer knows but her colleagues don't. In any event even with a reasonable adjustment it's the employers role to manage resources fairly, taking a personal issue with a colleague can be construed as bullying and I'd be careful about how I raised any concerns.

If the OP isn't able to do the additional physical tasks, that's a conversation to be had with her manager, without reference to the colleague who is also struggling. Cries of 'it's not fair' really should have been left in the playground, not making it's way into a professional workplace.