Citizens Medical Centre, a hospital in Victoria, Texas, — recently instituted a new hiring policy that bans job applicants from employment for being overweight.

The new policy states that the hospital will not hire anyone with a body mass index (BMI which is a formula used to determine fat) of 35 or higher. This is the equivalent of someone who is five feet five inches tall and weighs 210 pounds or someone who is 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighs 245 pounds. According to the policy, an employee’s physique “should fit with a representational image or specific mental projection of the job of a health-care professional.” 

David Brown, the hospital’s CEO, stated, “The majority of our patients are over 65 and they have expectations that cannot be ignored in terms of personal appear- ~ ance.” He further stated that, “We have the ability as an employer to characterize our process and to have a policy that says what’s best for our business and our patients.”

As part of the hiring process, job applicants are screened by a physician who assesses their fitness for work, which includes their body mass index. Existing workers who become obese during employment are not terminated; however, job applicants have been turned away as a result of the policy.

Although the laws in Texas do not prohibit weight discrimination in hiring, they do prohibit discrimination based on race, age, or religion. However, according to Peggy Howell, public relations director for the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, “This is discrimination plain and simple. So the field of medicine is no longer an option for people of larger body size? What a waste of talent.” She said that a hospital should know that lots of medical conditions lead to obesity or weight gain.

According to CEO David Brown, excessive weight has “all kinds of encumbrances” for the hospital and its health plan, and there’s evidence that extremely obese employees are absent from work more often. What do you think about Citizens Medical Centre’s new hiring policy? Do perceptions, attributions, and stereotypes have anything to do with the hiring policy? What do you think is the reason for such a policy and do you believe it is in the best interests of the hospital and its patients? Is this something that other organizations should consider doing? What are the implications?