5-Foot-4, 305-Pound Woman Puts Weight Behind Battle Against Size Discrimination

SOQUEL, Calif. — At 305 pounds, 5-foot-4 Toni Cassista is a hefty woman fighting for a ban on size discrimination in the job market.

“The thing of it is, I was denied employment because of my weight,” Cassista, 42, said Friday, noting a prospective food market employer turned her work application down because he feared she wouldn’t fit in the aisles.

Cassista is fighting back.

She’s launched a drive for Santa Cruz City and County to become the first local governments in California to adopt ordinances banning size discrimination in hiring policies.

The county’s Affirmative Action Commission and Women’s Commission have scheduled a public forum on the issue for Aug. 23 in downtown Santa Cruz.

“I’ve always been a large woman,” Cassista said. But no one had told her that overweight could be a factor for employment until 1987 when she applied for a job with Community Foods, a co-op store in nearby downtown Santa Cruz.

“All they talked about was whether or not I could work 40 hours a week; whether or not I could keep on my feet all day, whether or not I could fit down aisles.

“So I was being bombarded by all this stereotypical stuff.”

After that, Cassista decided the issue was greater “than just me and them.”