Mr Bercow, who is 5ft 6in, was the subject of a joke by the Prime Minister that referred to him as one of the Seven Dwarves. Mr Bercow then claimed that mocking a person for their stature was “somehow acceptable” in a society where jibes over skin colour or sexuality would be universally condemned.
To bring heightism into line with racism and homophobia would represent a marked change, as most people would say that people who are subject to heightism do not suffer nearly the same levels of prejudice as those who are victims of racism and homophobia.
In reality, do very short or very tall people suffer detriment in the workplace because of their height? Some claim that research tells us that short men are less likely to be hired, promoted or paid as well as their taller counterparts. Others are not so sure.
Rather than compare heightism to one of the more established and protected prejudices, perhaps heightism, and more general comments about someone’s physique, should be looked at separately. Only last year, under the old disability regime, it was held that obesity could lead to someone being deemed to be disabled, but this was under the disability regime, and not as a stand-alone right. Perhaps, for now, it would just be better for people in the workplace to think twice before making comments about someone’s physique; after all, that will rarely be relevant to how they do their job.