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Originally Posted by Xanathos
Let's take a shot in the dark and say it probably wasn't 600 pounds.
How do you know what he was two years ago? Maybe its genetic. Maybe he comes from Obese parents. You don't know how he got there. The human body works different from a 22 yr old to a 42 yr old. Please stop assuming anything without facts.
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He couldn't even walk from his car to his job post. Yet we're supposed to believe he had no trouble standing for 8 hours each day while he sifted parts? I doubt that very much. And who cares if the company didn't let him transfer to another position. THey aren't obligated to just create some makework job to accommodate him because he's eaten so many Twinkies that he could make a self-conscious hippo feel better about its weight.
Again you are making assumptions plus you have no clue on human physiology. How about you try a little test: Next time you go to the supermarket pickup four gallons of water and just stand there with two gallons in each hand. Next walk up and down the aisles a few times with them in your hands. Come back and tell us your results?
I'm not making any excuses for him being at this weight, but I'm not going to make assumptions on how he got there either. Maybe he is the worst case scenerio of eating to get there and maybe he's not. Walking across the parking lot is not part of work requirements. Only the aspects of actual job count. Him requesting a positon change is not a reasonable accomodation requirement. If he can't do 100% of his job in the position he was hired for, then thats his fault. If he cant get (walk) through areas that meet the ADA requirement of three feet wide then again its his fault. As to the forklift: The seatbelt not fitting is a OSHA violation. But if he exceeds the weight limit the seating area can handle and he cannot safely drive it and its also a part of his job requirements then this part makes it his fault. Reasonable accomodation is not the company buying him his own personal forklift.
"The company will have to spend a fortune defending itself ". Nonsense, corps are sued all the time, this case, where none of us have facts, is most likely a slam dunk either way, either the firing had merit, the corp can prove it quickly, thus keeping costs down, or its baseless, and I welcome the corp spending fruitlessly, as if baseless, they deserve such losses.
Most corp suits are NOT expensive, a few are, and they cost megabucks, but employment law is not usually gray. Most corps obey the law, and have a great paper trail, while the rogues discriminate, and they are the ones who scream for your non-sensical, non evidence based defense.
Boo Hoo.
Well, you have the feds suing the company, not just some slimy ambulance chasing attorney. So I don't think the company can quickly get it thrown out of court.
Its funny the same folks who believe the court system is unjust and corrupt when it involves a death row inmate, seem to be fine leaving it up to the courts when it involves a company being sued.
"The feds" aren't suing in this case, it is the worker.
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Yes they are, the headline:
Feds sue company for firing 600-pound worker
and from the article:
BAE Systems violated federal disability laws by firing a morbidly obese employee at its plant in Sealy, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleged in a lawsuit Tuesday.
Being born with MS is a disability
Breaking your neck and being paralyzed from the waist down is a disability
Having severe ASTHMA is a disability.
Not being able to refrain from eating 24 doughnuts in one sitting is not a disability. That's a lifestyle choice. You don't climb to 600 pounds because you have a gland that's out of control. You climb to 600 pounds because you spend too much time sucking the marrow out of chicken bones because KFC's 20 piece bucket "wasn't enough food".
Wrong. Some people have a VERY low Metabolism, which means that that 1 [yes 1] donut they eat wont be absorbed for a long time. By the time they eat again, that first donut is still not digested, so they end up with a surplus of energy in their body which = fat and weight increase.
It IS a disability for some people to be fat in that they cant help it.
All this lawsuit is going to do is NOT hire heavy set people period or anyone who they think may become obese. I find it sad that someone can by their own choice become so large they can no longer complete their job as per the description.
Why is it the companies responsibility to find another position for this person to do because they can no longer do the job they were hired for because of gaining weight.
The person needs to go to a weight loss camp and get on the right track a 600 lb person is Not a healthy person and possibility a liability to the company.
What if they died from a heart attack because the job was to stressful, to anything and they were sued because they should have found another position for this person.
"Its funny the same folks who believe the court system is unjust and corrupt when it involves a death row inmate, seem to be fine leaving it up to the courts when it involves a company being sued"
If corp could receive death penalty and by that I mean the owners killed, I'd want a higher bar. Until than, your point is a RED HERRING.
How do you know what he was two years ago? Maybe its genetic. Maybe he comes from Obese parents. You don't know how he got there. The human body works different from a 22 yr old to a 42 yr old. Please stop assuming anything without facts.
Yes, clearly we should assume that he has a genetic defect or that it's "not his fault" instead of applying Occam's Razor and going with the most logical conclusion. Let's do that. It sounds better, and makes unicorns smile.
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As to the forklift: The seatbelt not fitting is a OSHA violation. But if he exceeds the weight limit the seating area can handle and he cannot safely drive it and its also a part of his job requirements then this part makes it his fault. Reasonable accomodation is not the company buying him his own personal forklift.
He claims that he asked for a belt extender. The company does not acknowledge this. How dare you ASSUME that he asked for one when you clearly don't have all the facts? (See, I can do that, too).
But frankly, he had no business driving a forklift. Someone that size should only be transported around on the forks of one, supposing it's rated for that much weight.
He claims that he asked for a belt extender. The company does not acknowledge this. How dare you ASSUME that he asked for one when you clearly don't have all the facts? (See, I can do that, too).
This being a response to:
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The seatbelt not fitting is a OSHA violation.
Ir doesn't matter if he requested it or not. The company is 100% at fault because his supervisor allowed him to drive the forklift without a seatbelt. Thus it is an OSHA violation.
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Someone that size should only be transported around on the forks of one
Deragatory statements are not necessary in this or any other thread.
Weight is not a protected class in America. It is 100% legal to fire someone based on weight. It is also 100% legal to fire someone because they are a smoker, or wear blue shirts too much, or eat too much corn chowder. Discrimination is 100% legal in America. The only classes by which discrimination is illegal are:
Race - Federal: Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Civil Rights Act of 1866
Color - Federal: Civil Rights Act of 1964
Religion - Federal: Civil Rights Act of 1964
National origin - Federal: Civil Rights Act of 1964
Age (40 and over) - Federal: Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967
Sex - Federal: Equal Pay Act of 1963 & Civil Rights Act of 1964
Familial status (Housing, cannot discriminate for having children, exception for senior housing)
Sexual orientation (in some jurisdictions and not in others)
Gender identity (in some jurisdictions and not in others)
Disability status - Federal: Vocational Rehabilitation and Other Rehabilitation Services of 1973 & Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
Veteran status - Federal Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974
Genetic information -Federal: Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act
If it is not on that list, as an employer you can discriminate to your hearts content.
As well it should be because if a worker can't any longer do the job you hired them to do you should be able to replace them.
I work in a factory and we work 12 hour shifts on concrete. We use a tagging commitee when hiring to do the interview process. We are not allowed to disqualify no matter how obese the applicant. What happens is time effort and money is wasted on an applicant that will never hold up under the demands of working on concrete. Now bleeding hearts will say the company should find a suitable job or allow more breaks or create a position for the individual.
Or
common sense would suggest that someone 250+ pounds over weight cant meet the requirements of the job. What can I say it sucks to be obese. I for 1 am sick and tired of the wasted effort.
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