‘Fat applicants are less likely to get that job’

The weight and appearance of a job applicant and those already in work can have a direct effect on their chances of getting a job and their success in the workplace.

A total of 70 per cent per cent of 300 senior managers and directors of major UK companies questioned saw overweight people as lacking self-discipline and self control. Nearly as many believed such employees had less energy and drive.

In contrast, 70 per cent thought that workers who were very fit were better able to cope with the stresses and demands of senior business roles. The survey was carried out by the Aziz Corporation, an executive communications and management development consultancy.

Khalid Aziz, chairman of the Aziz Corporation, said: “Appearance matters in business and weight is one of the key factors in appearance.”

“If you have two candidates both capable of doing a job and one is of normal weight and the other is heavily overweight, then often the thinner person will be chosen, particularly if they will be a client-facing role. This is because, rightly or wrongly, being slim is often equated with being successful.”

However, Ben Willmott, CIPD employee relations adviser, cast doubt on the survey's findings - and on the conclusions that had been drawn from it.

He said: "The vast majority of employers treat people as individuals and recruit them on their ability to do the job rather than how much they weigh. Employers that make assumptions about people’s abilities on the basis of appearance rather than their outputs and performance will not recruit and retain talent."

The survey also found that 44 per cent of bosses had made a new year’s resolution to lose weight.

March 2007