The City Council passed a bill Thursday prohibiting discrimination on the basis of a person’s height and weight in housing, in employment opportunities, and at public places like hotels and restaurants. 

The bill, which adds height and weight as a protected category under the city’s human rights law, passed in a 45 to 5 vote.

New Yorkers will now be able to bring a case to the Commission on Human Rights if they believe they were discriminated against because of their height or weight.

“For so long, people experiencing weight discrimination have lived with a silent burden of having to navigate the negative attitudes towards people experiencing weight discrimination, and so today, the City Council is providing a legal remedy so that people who are facing discrimination in the workplace and housing when it comes to height and weight can speak up,” said Council member Shaun Abreu, who sponsored the bill.

Abreu cited a study by the hygiene products company Dove that indicated that across the country, 34 million people say they’ve experienced weight discrimination, and that 2 million people have reported experiencing discrimination on the basis of weight in New York City.

In addition, a National Library of Medicine study indicated that every six pounds that an American woman gains results in a 2% wage loss. 

Advocates say the issue is prevalent in industries that are front-facing, such as retail work and secretarial roles. 

Fashion retail is one sector that advocates say the issue is particularly rampant. 

“They create this mold, how these workers have to be and look,” said Eno Awotoye, coordinator for Retail Action Project, an advocacy organization for non-union retail workers. “In some cases, you can't finish an application without being asked to send an image so that they see what you look like.” 

The Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, which represents about 40,000 workers in the city, supports the bill.

“We know that making this sort of conduct illegal won't change these discriminatory practices overnight, but it will provide workers with a route to fight back against the most egregious forms of discrimination, and will also help to shift the culture around body shaming,” Joshua Kellerman, director of public policy of the union, said in public testimony at a Committee on Civil and Human Rights hearing in February.

Women of color make up the majority of members in the retail workers union, and Kellerman said body image discrimination often goes hand-in-hand with racial discrimination and bias against women.

Weight bias can impact a worker's overall compensation, performance evaluations and quality of training received, according to advocates.

Abreu hopes the legislation not only provides a legal remedy for New Yorkers, but also chips away at preconceived notions about a person based on their weight. 

“Just because you're heavier in weight doesn't mean you're any less healthy. Just because you're skinny doesn't mean you're any more healthy,” Abreu said. “And it's important that people start challenging themselves before they start sharing negative observations about people.”

New York City is now the second-largest municipality with weight discrimination protections. The state of Michigan, which has a population of about 10 million people, has a statewide protection against weight discrimination.

Other cities that have protections against weight discrimination include San Francisco, Washington, D.C. and Binghamton, New York.

Measures against height discrimination were also included in the bill. Studies show that height correlates with higher income, and that recruiters perceive tall job candidates as more competent, employable and healthy. Taller men and women are seen as more ‘leader-like’ and tall men are more likely to attain managerial positions, according to studies.

The bill includes an exemption for jobs like athletes where height and weight can directly impact a person’s ability to perform, according to Abreu.

The state legislature is currently considering similar bills in the Assembly and Senate to protect against weight discrimination.