Nowadays, it feels like not a week goes by without another set of statistics suggesting a serious decline in the levels of health and fitness here in the UK. You may have read recently about figures published in the Lancet medical journal that indicate that we now have the third highest levels of obesity in Western Europe.  Only Iceland and Malta beat us to the top spot. Does that cause a stirring of patriotic pride in you as it does in me? Apparently, 67% of men and 57% of women in the UK are now either overweight or obese. Many of the problems caused by such high levels of obesity are clear to see.  But what of the potential for obese people to suffer discrimination at or in relation to their work? Is this a problem that is so serious that laws should be put in place to prevent it? Existing protection As things stand, there are no laws that specifically prevent employers from discriminating against obese or overweight employees. However, they enjoy some indirect protection via disability discrimination legislation. English courts and tribunals have acknowledged that obesity may exacerbate or indeed lead to conditions that could constitute a disability (e.g. diabetes, joint problems and cardio-vascular disease). 

Any discrimination that arises as a consequence of such disabilities would be unlawful. No doubt, most of us see the sense and indeed the fairness in implementing laws to protect disabled workers. But what if the law went a step further and made it illegal to discriminate against obese employees, whether the obesity caused them any specific health problems or not? The next step? Employment lawyers are now looking with interest at a case brought by a Danish child-minder called Karsten Kaltoft. He is asking the European Court of Justice (ECJ) to rule that his employer’s decisions to dismiss him because of his weight was an act of unlawful discrimination. He was dismissed from his job with a local authority after they concluded that, as a result of his weight, he was no longer able to do his job effectively. At the time, he weighed more than 25 stone. 

He argues that European laws should be interpreted so as to protect him from discrimination on the grounds of his obesity, without needing to consider whether he could also be said to be disabled. What does this mean? If the ECJ finds in Mr Kaltoft’s favour, this decision could have far-reaching implications for workers here in the UK. Firstly, the Government would probably have to introduce new laws expressly to protect obese workers from discrimination within the workplace - the current protection provided indirectly through disability discrimination legislation is unlikely to be sufficient.  Secondly, employers would have to take steps to ensure that their practices and procedures are not discriminatory and do not place obese people at a disadvantage when compared with people of average weight. Lawyers and employers alike will need to keep an eye on how this ‘growing’ area of law develops.  Obesity and the various problems that it causes are unlikely to go away any time soon...