Use of a Discrimination Expert Witness in Hooters case possible? Here is an excerpt from an article speaking about the recent weight discrimination case against Hooters in Michigan. Should the suit continue, it is likely to involve some sort of employment expert witness.
Hooters case sparks debate about weight discrimination
Rule has been unique to Michigan since ’76
As a nation grows more obese, a unique state law that has catapulted Hooters of America into a legal minefield is gaining more attention from lawyers, lawmakers and civil rights activists.
Unlike any other state, Michigan is the only one to ban discrimination based on weight, according legal experts.
All efforts to adopt the 1976 law in other states have failed, advocates said, because many believe weight is something that can be controlled.
“People still believe obesity is a self-inflicted condition or disease,” said James Zervios, spokesman for the Tampa, Fla.-based Obesity Action Coalition. “It’s still acceptable to make fat jokes.”
In the past three weeks, two former Hooters waitresses in Roseville filed weight discrimination lawsuits against the restaurant giant, claiming they were fired for not being slender enough. It’s one of the first cases to test the state’s weight discrimination law, which is part of the broader Elliot-Larsen Civil Rights Act that bars other types of discrimination, such as race, gender, height and age.
Mike McNeil, Hooters’ vice president of marketing, said the state law is “one of the long list of things that make it harder for us to do business in Michigan than in our 45 other states.”
The law was passed after lawmakers heard from women who said they couldn’t land auto, police and fire jobs that men dominated because of height standards.
Some employment and discrimination expert witnesses say the Hooters lawsuit is just one example of how employers often discriminate based on appearance. Others say one's appearance, including weight, can be a legitimate factor in hiring decisions.
Although Michigan has a rare law that bans discrimination based on weight and height, employment still is a lot easier to find if you're thin, lawyers and advocacy groups say.
"This is really a common business practice," said attorney Richard Bernstein, who represents Cassie Smith and Leanne Convery in lawsuits that claim they were fired as waitresses because they weren't trim enough. "This really is the cornerstone of civil rights: You can't discriminate based on appearance."
Read the full article here.
Additional Discrimination Expert Witness resources available in the Witness.net expert witness directory.
No Comments so far ↓
There are no comments yet...Kick things off by filling out the form below.