🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1d7sljINN6dg@gap.caltech.edu>, mberteig@cco.caltech.edu (Michelle Berteig) writes:
> Hi everyone!
> 
> I've been a lurker here for awhile, but now I have a question for your
> collective wisdom!  
> 
> Here's the story:  I worked at a great job for 6 years.  I never finished my
> college degree, so I made the decision to do that (the time was right), which
> meant I had to quit my job.  It will take me 6 months to finish my degree and
> I wanted to take a leave of absence for that time, but company policy only
> restricts a leave for personal reasons to one month.  So I had to quit.
> Of course, it was under good circumstances, and I will be rehired when I
> finish my degree.  That is the good news!
> 
> But when I met with a personnel representative for my exit interview, he
> told me (aside, as a friend) that to be rehired, I would have to pass a
> physical, and that my weight could be an issue that could come up to
> keep them from rehiring me.  He suggested I diet...
> 
> I am 28 years old, 5'9", and weigh about 280 pounds.  I have been large
> all my life and have never had any health problems.  I think this is
> discrimination.  I am wondering, how should I handle this when the time
> comes? (next March)  I keep thinking, I was there for 6 years, they can
> see by insurance claims that I have no health problems.  Also, I know
> my department wants me back, so maybe thay can get around it.  It seems
> as if I'm always fighting company policy (maybe since company policy is
> stupid!)
> 
> Any advice is welcome, please post or email me at mberteig@cco.caltech.edu.
> Thanks!
> 
> --Michelle Berteig

Michelle,
        I know that I'm young, being only 22, but this sounds fishy.  First
before I get into it though, did you have to have a physical before you started
the job the first time?  Are doing activities where weight could be considered
a problem?  This could make a difference.
        I don't think it will be a problem to have a physical unless it is to
"weed" people out.  If it is only used for insurance, fine.  If it is used
other than that, then it is discrimination and should be looked into. 
Overweight people aren't the only people this would effect.  By doing this they
could weed out people with physical challenges, people with histories of
illness, homosexuals, etc.  I know that discrimination laws about weight are
vague, but they are specific about race, gender, and people with disabilities
and these tactics would affect them too.
        You'll have to decide what to do, but don't let it rest if they won't
give you insurance or your job back beacuse if it's happening to you, it's
happening to others too.

Melissa

In article <Bx8H83.Au1@akix.uucp> sue@akix.uucp (Sue Raul) writes:
>[...]
>My totally speculative guess about your question is that the company's
>health insurance rates would be lower if you lost weight and
>they want you to comply in order to meet these lower rates.
>This should be out in the open, or it's maybe illegal and so
>they're being sly about it.  This bothers me for two reasons:
>A) The insurance company is getting away with discrimination
>by arbitrarily establishing higher rates for fatness, and B)
>[...]

This kind of stuff REALLY irritates me.  I, for one, have weighed more
than insurance companies deem `correct' for about 35 years.  For 30 of
those years I have been working and paying for health insurance.  In these
past 30 years I've had not over $3,000 in total in health insurance claims.
Hell, I figure my insurance premiums have been paying for all the claims
made by all those slim people!

Germaine

-- 
| Germaine A. L'Eveque                      germaine@cs.columbia.edu |
|  Phone:  (212) 939-7003 or (212) 854-8112     FAX: (212) 666-0140  |
|    Academic Records Administrator, Computer Science Department     |
|   Columbia University, 450-E Com.Sci.Bldg., New York, NY  10027    |

In article <Bx8H83.Au1@akix.uucp> sue@akix.uucp (Sue Raul) writes:
>A) The insurance company is getting away with discrimination
>by arbitrarily establishing higher rates for fatness,

Whatever the merits of this person's individual situation is,
it strikes me as a bit silly to describe what insurance companies
do as "discrimination".  Obesity is an independent risk factor
in evaluating a population's morbidity and mortality.  You might
have to pay higher rates if you're obese (and have a lousy health
insurance plan.)  That's how many insurance companies do business.
Different risk pools pay different rates.

Personally, I've always belonged to a HMO and the rate setting
procedure to my employer was never obvious to me.  I think it depended
on the number of claims coming from an organization, and not the
characteristics of any individual before needing medical care.  I've
had cause to become a non-group member a few times inbetween periods of
non-self-employment and there's only been a single non-group rate.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer