By Dan Mello
When reading Gary Dickson”s column in Saturday”s Record-Bee I was prepared to read more preaching about the problems obesity is causing in our society. Instead, I found the column fair, realistic and not preachy. I appreciate his unbiased observations and sensitive approach to the subject.
I have had a weight problem all my life, as did the generations before me, and the generations ahead. The subject of what to do about our excess weight has been the subject of many family conversations. The battle has led many of us through major changes in our lives as we have struggled to solve “the problem.” We just gained more weight as a result. My family, and most obese people I know, eventually learn to deal with their weight problem like they deal with any other health problem. Most eventually learn to love and accept themselves exactly as they are. Those who do will be your most trustworthy friends, and most loyal employees.
Though I can only speak from my experience, in my 40 years in the workforce I have seen a lot of co-workers leave jobs because of injuries and health problems. None of them were obese. I”m not saying obesity is nothing to be concerned about. But if an employer is concerned about employee injuries or health issues causing them to leave their employ, they really should conduct a health screening for all employees before hiring them. That way employers could know if they were hiring a smoker with a risk of cancer, or an athlete with a history of back injuries, or seemingly healthy candidate being treated for multiple sclerosis, or any one of the dozens of conditions that force employees to stop working. Unfortunately, obese people carry their handicap around with them, so it can”t be hidden from a prospective employer like smoking or improper athletic training or degenerative illness. Based on my experience, I would predict that if employers did a health screening they would find their obese and non-obese candidates were about the same risk. Even those formerly obese candidates who have become thin by the many ways available to do so are at risk from health problems caused by those “solutions.”
Hopefully, as my children and I continue through our lives, we will encounter employers who have been fortunate enough to know that their best employees were obese, and it is actually something in the candidate”s favor, not something to be afraid of. I would not want to work for an employer who thought otherwise.
Dan Mello
Lakeport
