Overweight women face employment, salary discrimination

While overweight women are already at risk for health problems such as heart disease and diabetes, new research found that these women have yet another struggle to overcome – getting a job, My Fox Tampa Bay reported.

Scientists at The University of Manchester and Monash University, Melbourne found that obese women are much more likely to experience discrimination when trying to get a job and be paid less money than their slimmer colleagues.

The study involved showing a group of people, acting as hiring employers, various resumes and headshots of people seeking jobs.  The ‘employers’ were then asked to rate the candidates based on their employability, starting salary and probability for advancement.

According to the researchers, pictures of women before and after weight loss surgery were shown.

“We found that strong obesity discrimination was displayed across all job selection criteria, such as starting salary, leadership potential, and likelihood of selecting an obese candidate for the job,” said lead author Dr. Kerry O’Brien.

The research was published in the International Journal of Obesity.

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