Man sues New Jersey resort for discrimination over his weight
April 14, 2015
We hear about people being discriminated against in the workplace for all sorts of reasons, from gender to race to sexual orientation to religion. However, a Sussex County, New Jersey, man says that he faced harassment and discrimination by his employer for being obese.
The man has filed a federal lawsuit against his former employer, Mountain Creek Resort. He worked as a food manager for the Vernon ski resort and water park. During his employment, which lasted from 2011 to the end of 2014, the 300-pound, 6-foot tall man says that he endured multiple demeaning comments about his size. He quotes his boss as telling him to lose weight, “keep walking that hill….” and “get yourself back in the gym!” The president of the resort calls the man’s claims “wildly inaccurate.”
The “corporate bullying and discrimination,” as his attorney describes it, includes allegations that he was denied a promotion. He also says that he was given assignments like finding busty women to work in the bar and at bachelor parties. He further alleges that he was told not to pay vendors.
Because the plaintiff’s body mass index was greater than 40 during his employment, he qualifies as being “morbidly obese” under the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Therefore, he is claiming that the resort violated by the ADA and New Jersey discrimination laws. He is asking for back pay, attorneys’ fees and damages. His attorney says he endured “more than any person should be expected to suffer,”
We all know that the workplace can sometimes feel like we’re in high school all over again, with taunts, bullying, exclusion and just plain nasty behavior from co-workers and superiors alike. However, you don’t necessarily have to just accept it. People who believe that they are the victims of discrimination should seek the advice of a New Jersey employment law attorney to find out what recourse they may have.
Source: NJ.com, “Mountain Creek bosses ridiculed man because he’s obese, lawsuit alleges,” Seth Augenstein, April. 10, 2015
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