Being overweight is often a symptom/cause of depression and or poor self image. In today’s job market you don’t have to be Debbie Downer to not seem as upbeat as some of the other 100 or so candidates competing for a job opening.
Two things:
- She doesn’t have a noticeable Arkansas accent. I think she spent several of her formative years in the Midwest, and that’s what she sounds like.
- She definitely does suffer from depression. She talked about it pretty freely.
Right now in California, two months of job-seeking is a very short time. My husband is very employable indeed, and got laid off two months ago. We are hopeful that he’ll get something next week, but in 2009 he was unemployed for 8+ months, and he has a ton of skillz.
It is very difficult to get a job right now. There’s no need to think she’s being discriminated against yet.
You know, with this description, instead of morbidly obese, if you had said, “the eyelashes on her right eye are slightly longer than those on her left eye . . . do you think that’s holding her back?”, we would have all responded that her eyelashes had nothing to do with it, that jobless BAs in their mid-20s are a dime a dozen, esp. in CA.
So, her weight probably doesn’t help, but even if she had a BMI of 18 she would probably still be unemployed
I have to be honest and say I would not hire a young girl who weighed what looked like 400 pounds because when I met her at the interview I would be thinking ok, here’s a person who isn’t willing to work hard to meet a goal…next!
Am I the only one wondering why a 400 pound girl in her 20s with a lot of free time on her hands isn’t doing everything she can to lose the weight?
Is she?
IMHO, no. She has depression and seems to use food as a comfort. This caused some conflict between her and my parents, who got annoyed with her excessive fridge raiding. For instance, my sister bought four It’s Its - one for everyone in the house but my mom (who’s diabetic). Mary ate two of them, resulting in my sister getting none of the treats she’d bought herself.
Anyway, thanks for your input, everyone.
This really should read “here’s a person who isn’t willing to work hard to meet a goal I think she should have.”
She finished college, she’s obviously willing to work hard to meet a goal.
I have occasionally hired technicians at my place of work. I am primarily looking for technical competency, though I will admit a person’s weight can be a factor in whether or not I hire them. All else being equal, I will hire someone who is not fat verses one who is.
Exactly.
When I see someone who is obese, I assume they are either lazy, depressed, and/or lack discipline. I do not what these qualities in an employee.
If she’s still on some kind of insurance, and has some recovery time to herself, she could apply for weight loss surgery. I did itand it has been one of the best things I ever did for myself . At her age, she has the rest of her life to enjoy the end result.
Orwell was below his predictions. She’s not ‘so overweight’, she’s fucking obese.
this is the attitude we overweight or “fucking obese” people face, hence why it would be hard to get hired. :smack:
and for the record, its not hard to walk if youre 400 lbs. its hard to run 
It’s not or. It’s like comparing “a little tipsy” with “alcohol-induced coma”.
Everyone is judgmental whether they admit it or not. And most hiring authorities will discriminate based on an applicant’s dress, mannerisms, personality, and overall “looks.” It may not be fair, but that’s the way it is.
As mentioned above, I occasionally hire technicians for full-time employment at my workplace. I primarily look for technical competency and a strong work ethic. But there are other qualities that will boost - or decrease - my interest in the applicant. Things that will decrease the likelihood of me hiring you during an interview include:
Tattoos. Any tattoo visible to me during the interview will virtually guarantee you won’t get the job.
Piercings on a male. An instant disqualifier.
Casual dress. Though my technicians are welcome to wear jeans on the job, they are completely inappropriate during an interview.
Being very fat/obese. IMHO, there is a correlation between being fat and being lazy. So the fatter you are, the less likely I am to hire you.
Poor grooming habits. A disheveled appearance, bad breath, or any hint of body odor will be a major strike against you.
Overweight is probably a factor but, California has 10+% unemployment. Not the best place to look for a job. Additionally, I’m hearing that 5 to 6 months is the length of a job search now.
Apparently you overlooked Kyla’s use of the phrase “morbidly obese” in the previous paragraph.
I agree, but there are exceptions. I own a business and currently have an all female employee roster. When I am looking for someone to fill an open position, I’ve seen the woman who does the interviews/etc (I stay away from that end of things) will look at an extremely attractive woman and find fault where there is none. Just an observation on my part.
Seriously? :dubious:
Could her weight be impacting her job search? Absolutely. Are all employers predjudiced against the obese? Not at all.
At this point focusing on the weight isn’t going to help. Yes, encourage her to exercise and eat right because it is important that everyone do these things. Let her know that weight loss could help in a job search too. But honestly even if she lost 50 lbs tomorrow she would still be very heavy and facing the same prejudice she is today. The weight loss might be beneficial to her 2 or 3 years down the line after she has had time to lose 150 lbs when it comes to job searching but it isn’t going to do anything for her next week. I would focus on things that can be changed in a short period of time. Encourage her to update her resume, if she doesn’t shower at least every other day let her know how that might be impacting her job search, etc. Also let her know she should be going to networking events and looking for social activities. Volunteering would be an excellent way to meet people as well.
Speaking as a pretty significantly overweight female (less so lately - wahoo!), I can say that being overweight is a strike against you, but by no means an insurmountable one. I’m someone who does well in job interviews since I’m reasonably well-spoken, personable, and I think fast on my feet. Generally if I get as far as an interview, my track record is pretty good.
That said, I’ve had some bad experiences. I got called for an out-of-town interview at a doctor’s office years ago. They were very nice… until I showed up. The doctor was exceptionally rude and dismissive from the get-go, and interviewed me in a way that I would have to sound unqualified. For example (and imagine this in a harsh, nasty tone): “Well, I don’t think <x job which was my only relevant experience> should count because it was only temporary work <even though I was there for a year>, so you tell me how exactly <random unrelated job I worked for a much shorter time> makes you at all qualified for this job, and why you thought it was appropriate to waste our time by applying.” The interview was also maybe 5 minutes long.
I couldn’t help but notice that, except for the doctor, the employees were all girls around my age, but were all very fit and attractive. I figured that his MO had to be to look at recent graduation dates and names, and call in the people most likely to be pretty young things. He, of course, was very overweight, not to mention boorish and unpleasant.
Granted, it might not have been the fat thing, but that was definitely the very strong vibe I had gotten at the time. I mean, my resume was good enough until they saw me in person, and then the claws were out.