Fat Lawsuits Could Weigh on Economy

0 Comments | Insight on the News, Dec 8, 2003 | by Jennifer G. Hickey

Byline: Jennifer G. Hickey, INSIGHT

Fat Lawsuits Could Weigh on Economy

Obesity has been recognized officially as a growing danger to the health of Americans, but an expanding issue related to obesity might endanger the nation's economic health. On Nov. 6, the Employment Law Alliance (ELA) released findings from its "America at Work" opinion poll portending a rise in lawsuits alleging employment-related obesity discrimination.

The survey found 47 percent of obese Americans believe they have suffered discrimination in the workplace, while 32 percent think workers of larger carriage less likely to be respected and taken seriously in the workplace. Nearly 40 percent of those who identified themselves either as obese or overweight contend they deserve special government protection against weight-based discrimination in the workplace, though only 26 percent of individuals of normal weight echoed that contention.

Stephen J. Hirschfeld, chief executive officer and founder of ELA and, as it happens, a California-based employment lawyer, noted employers may be "looking at a problem that could rival or surpass that of gender and race discrimination in the workplace," particularly as obesity-related conditions drive health-care costs upward. Reed, Haldy, Macintosh & Associates, a Media, Pa.-based marketing-research firm, conducted the poll.

The threat of litigation has inspired several food companies, including Kraft, to launch healthier product lines and put more nutrition facts on the labels of foodstuffs. A recent survey conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs among people trying to adhere to law-carbohydrate diets found that imagination outpaced knowledge. More than 60 percent were unaware that alcoholic spirits, such as Smirnoff Vodka and Johnnie Walker Scotch whisky, contain no carbohydrates. Similarly, 55 percent of those polled believed that tequila contains a high or medium amount of carbohydrates, although it contains none at all.

Indeed, a 1.5-ounce serving of dry wine contains less than one gram of carbs. Fruit juices and soda are especially high in carbs, containing 25 grams and 38.5 grams per serving, respectively.

Do Driver's Licenses Pose Security Threat?

California Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has moved to repeal a law permitting illegal immigrants to obtain driver's licenses, signed by former governor Gray Davis. Yet he is not the only elected official concerned about identifying lapses in security.

States are responsible for determining which personal identification must be presented to obtain a license, and their requirements differ. According to the National Council of State Legislatures, 12 states considered legislation in 2003 pertaining to such documentation requirements: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Rhode Island, Texas and Virginia. Bills tightening license requirements were passed by legislatures in Colorado, Hawaii and Maryland. Some federal officials believe national-security concerns necessitate stricter and more prominent federal credentialing standards on a national level.

"States like California that have adopted unsafe standards for issuing driver's licenses are putting not only their citizens at risk, but are endangering the entire country as well," said Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) in announcing HR 3461 to remedy the situation. Introduced on Nov. 6, the bill would prohibit federal agencies from accepting a driver's license as a form of identity "unless the application process for the license or document includes the presentation by the applicant of evidence of identity."

The bill also would require that driver's licenses issued in the United States to foreign nationals be void on or before the expiration date of their visas. The legislation has been referred both to the House Government Reform and House Judiciary committees.

Money Doesn't Take Care of All Worries

Those Americans who annually take in more than $313,000 (adjusted gross income) often are portrayed as a different breed with a different set of values and views. But a survey prepared for the U.S. Trust Company found attitudes of the affluent are not dissimilar from those of everyday Americans. In fact, their views mimic the apprehensions among the general population about terrorist threats to national security, terrorism's impact on the economy and whether the next generation will face a more-precarious financial situation than their own.

Among the selected sample, 86 percent harbored worries about the rippling effect that terrorism at home and abroad could have on the U.S. economy and securities markets. Slightly more than 82 percent are concerned that the next generation will face a less-than-favorable financial environment. Concerns about the fiscal burdens of the next generation increased nine points from the 2002 survey.

A positive sign for the equities markets is the overwhelming sentiment respondents expressed about the wisdom of investments. Slightly more than 40 percent thought it was not more or less risky to invest in stocks and bonds; 34 percent considered the environment a little less or a lot less risky than one year ago. Twenty-three percent of respondents were more worried about investing than in 2002.