Step on to the weighing scale and you may just find out the salary you will be getting in the job market.
A recent survey conducted by the University of Florida found that women who start their careers — substantially thin — earn more. Also, if they dare to gain some weight over the years the direct impact is apparently felt on the pay packet they take home.
Men, however, seemed to be getting an easier deal, with those on the heavier side earning substantially more. So, what is it about body size that impacts your employers’ perceptions and your professional success?
Gulf News readers debate whether there is any connection between your waistline and your salary. Join the discussion at readers@gulfnews.com
Gulf News: According to research women with slimmer waistlines earn a better salary. Would you agree?
Ria Lobo: A good body size will be desirable in fields like sports, not in occupations that have nothing to do with physical tasks. Women won’t just benefit from a thin waist. They need to qualify for the job and be smart, too.
Eisha Gupta: Well, I do hope that body size does not feature as a requirement for employment in corporate or other professional fields.
Sunil Roy: A person does need to convey a certain physical image depending on the profession. I doubt that women who are slimmer are paid more. Salary is determined based on lots of other factors like qualification and experience. Women who are slim may earn more through the incentive structure that is linked to their sales.
Eljon Gabrillo: Actually, the paper mentioned a lot of controlled variables while qualification and education are held constant. But yes [slimmer women may be given preference], and I have to say it is linked with the pleasure principle of Freudian psychology.
Adam Dennaoui: I can understand why they would earn more. If women take better care of their bodies, it usually means that they take better care of their life in general. They are more professional at work, they take their job seriously and they know where they are going in life. Fatter people - I would say - may not take life as seriously.
Sunil Roy: There might be a perception that people who take care of their physical wellbeing will be able to take care of the professional field in a better manner, too. Most organisations have a public face and people who represent the public face are expected to look good, since it indirectly conveys the image of the organisation.
Meghna Tony: Women with slimmer waists are more confident due to their good looks and companies are likely to pay them better due to their confidence and excellence in their work.
Ria Lobo: I think looks should not matter more than a person’s skills. That would be unfair to the smart but not so goodlooking people.
Shamma Bu Hazza: I did complete a research paper on how women are more accepted in the media if they are more physically attractive. I did find that women who are more attractive get a higher position and it does not matter these days how hard you work or what college degree you have. It is about aesthetics and looks.
Gulf News: Well-proportioned men are judged to be friendly in the office.
Eisha Gupta: In fact I think ‘well proportioned’ men can also be judged to be arrogant, so it depends on your perspective. But, I do not agree with the statement.
Meghna Tony: I feel that it all depends on the way you behave with people. To be honest, I am skinny. That does not imply that I am not friendly with my classmates. If you are optimistic and have the confidence within you, you can prove your colleagues judgements to be wrong.
Pooja Vishwanathan: That might be the first thought that comes to one’s mind; so that might be the first impression. However, that might not always be true. I agree with Eisha. Well- proportioned men, can be thought of as arrogant and aggressive. Only eventual experiences with the person can actually tell us the true story.
Eisha Gupta: I would go for how his expression is at that moment. If he has a smile on his face, that is a sign of friendliness, but if he is frowning then I might think the opposite.
Gulf News: Thin men are seen as sneaky, sad and weak.
Sunil Roy: There are certain positions where thin men would not fit in especially where an authoritative role is expected, may be because people think they can be easily pushed over.
Meghna Tony: Thin men may look weak. But if you are a cheerful fellow in others’ company, nobody would be able to perceive you as someone who is gloomy.
Eljon Gabrillo: Yes, there is some truth to that, I must admit. It is just that society portrays thin men to be weak, and we believe it to be true. The paper mentions this cultivation theory, too.
Adam Dennaoui: I would agree in some ways with the statement. I wouldn’t say that extremely thin men are seen as sad or sneaky, but I believe they may be a bit weak physically. However, most of the managers I have worked with are leaning more towards being heavier, or have a normal body size. But ironically, my current manager is very, very thin.
Gulf News: Do you think employers still make hiring decisions based on subconscious judgements on the size of a person?
Sunil Roy: Yes, in the initial stages looks do matter and good looks give the candidate an edge over thers. But another aspect to this is that a good-looking candidate could give an inferiority complex to the interviewer, which may also lead to rejection.
Meghna Tony: If you are considered fit for the position and have all those great thoughts and ideas in your field of work then the company would employ you, whether you are good-looking or not. The company’s main target is its prosperity and not the looks of the people working in it.
Eljon Gabrillo: Yes, but only in the initial impression. Also, whenever I’m in an interview, they always question me about my health because I am very thin.
Shamma Bu Hazza: I have no idea as I am not currently a part of the workforce. But I do observe how it works in advertising, where you see how products sell in the market. I guess it is similar with reality, where people with better looks are accepted more easily.
Sunil Roy: Yes, the initial impression people get of me is very different from what I really am, but then after a few minutes I am able to get the attention I want.
Don’t let the pounds weigh down your aspirations
(By Iman Bin Shaibah, founder and editor in chief of an e-magazine and a resident of Dubai)
Career growth depends on personality, confidence and health, not excess fat
Though the research conducted by the University of Florida [in the US] argues that career growth is dependant in one way or another on the management’s perception of an employee’s weight, I beg to differ based on my experience and the observation of my surroundings.
First of all, I have to clarify that relatively speaking, I am categorised as slim. I started my career from the bottom, but my personality developed from there. As my personality grew so did my career.
I did gain and lose weight along the way, but that has never stopped my career growth. In my opinion, all the opportunities that were offered to me were based on the personality I projected, not because of the readings on the weighing scale.
Also, in my previous experiences, I have witnessed employees that are relatively on the heavier side continuing to grow in their careers after being hired directly at managerial level. It had nothing to do with their weight, instead it had everything to do with the strong personality they projected — in the way they present themselves and carry on with their work.
Granted, some women do allow their weight to affect their confidence and personality, and in other cases, their weight has a tremendous effect on their health. I believe that it is not the weight in specific that may hinder career growth, but rather the effect it might have on the personality and health that eventually stands in the way of their career growth.
