According to a new ruling made today by the European Court of Justice, obesity can be considered a disability in certain circumstances.
So does this mean we can all gorge ourselves on sugar-laced foods so that our bosses will be forced to let us work from home, like Homer Simpson?
No. It doesn’t, because that’s just a bad idea all-round.
It does, however, mean that obesity could be considered a disability if it “hinders the full and effective participation of the person concerned in professional life on an equal basis with other workers”.
That means that employers in Europe will be required to treat obese workers as “disabled” and so companies may be required to provide them with special facilities, such as larger chairs, wider parking spaces and even bigger fire escapes.
The decision was made following a case by Danish childminder Karsten Kaltoft who claims he was unfairly dismissed from his place of work due to his weight, which is believed to have been around 159kg at the time (that’s 25 stone in old money).
Speaking to the BBC earlier this year, Karsten Kaltoft said: “I can sit on the floor and play with them, I have no problems like that.
“I don’t see myself as disabled. It’s not OK just to fire a person because they’re fat, if they’re doing their job properly.”
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