Obesity can be a disability, the European Court of Justice ruled Thursday — a decision that could have widespread consequences across the 28-nation bloc for the way in which employers deal with severely overweight staff.
The ruling, which is binding across the EU, has such profound implications for employment law that experts expect EU nations to challenge, reports AP.
The court ruled in the case of a Danish child care worker Karsten Kaltoft, who weighed 350 pounds and said he was unfairly fired for being fat. The ruling said if obesity hinders a “full and effective participation in professional life,” it could count as a disability.
