Weight discrimination in the Workplace and in general

Weight discrimination is growing in America and it is almost as prevalent as racial discrimination, especially against women. This form of discrimination puts people who are over-weight at a disadvantage in the work place and socially. In this article by USAToday says that this form of discrimination has risen 66% over the past decade. The article also says that 28% of obese men and 45% obese women report being discriminated against. However the biggest concern I found in the article was that in the workplace many people are told if they they don't lose wait they will lose their job.

Here is the Link to the USAToday article:
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/weightloss/2008-05-20-overweight-bias_N.htm

This idea of Lose weight or Lose your job continues with a CNN money report. The company is Lincoln Industries, and all the employees are all physically fit says CEO Marc LeBaron. Lincoln industries has a new health program where the employees are given a discount on health insurance when they exercise or quit cigarettes. It is said that the program is not mandatory, however it has 100% participation. Apparently, 46% of companies offer a similar plan.

Workers do have rights the article says, HIPAA requires that incentives be available to all employees and be limited to less than 20% of a worker's coverage. Plus, 31 states have "lifestyle statutes" that prohibit businesses from discriminating against their employees for off site activities such as smoking.

In my opinion, these "health programs" are just another way for employers to now everything about their employee's medical information. While I agree that exercising and not smoking, etc. are good health choices; they are just that, choices. No company should force you to do all this extra work outside of what your are required to do for your job. Making someone go to the gym in their free time or spend more money at the grocery store to buy specialized foods is a little overboard. Now if the employer wanted to include work-out time and health seminars in the eight hour workday I would be okay with this. The Business world in American has done great without these programs so I don't feel that they are not necessary now.

Here is the article:
http://money.cnn.com/2008/06/30/smallbusiness/lose_weight.fsb/index.htm

Where does it end...with companies knowing so much about their employee's health and medical issues? Could Genetic Discrimination be next? A government Web site opens up the discussion by saying that many are concerned that genetic information may be used by insurers to deny, limit or cancel health insurance, and by employers to discriminate in the workplace. Employers could hire certain people for certain jobs based solely on genetics.

I believe companies would use this genetic/medical information to discriminate. Imagine a person who is too genetically/medically unfit to get hired and also to medically genetically unfit to qualify for health insurance...So this person can't get health insurance and when they want to work to pay their health expenses out-of-pocket, they can't do that either because no employer will have them...What do we say to people like that?

Some diseases are passed down from people's parents and the person has no control over them. No amount of healthy eating or exercise can ward off some diseases. Do these people deserve to be penalized with no job and no health coverage?

Here is the link to the government Website on genetic discrimination:
http://www.genome.gov/10002077

A blog from slate called The Puzzling Consensus in Favor of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act tries to defend disclosure of employee's genetic information. It also defends disclosure of genetic information to insurance companies. The blog makes the point that if the insurance company's had genetic information on their customers more people would get insurance and insurance would cost less for all. Here is the link: http://www.slate.com/blogs/blogs/convictions/archive/2008/05/04/the-puzzling-consensus-in-favor-of-the-genetic-information-nondiscrimination-act.aspx


What do you think: Should companies be allowed to use employee's health information in hiring decisions or in dictating employee's free-time activities?