May 20, 2010 11:03 AM

Too Fat for Hooters? Will Cassie Smith Lose Her Short Shorts? (PICTURES)

By
Caroline Black
Topics
Daily Blotter

Cassie Smith (Personal Photo)

ROSEVILLE, Mich. (CBS/AP) The "delightfully tacky, yet refined " restaurant chain, Hooters of America, is best known for their great-tasting wings, and well, big hooters, says the Hooters website.

PICTURES: Cassie Smith Too Fat For Hooters?

However, a 5-foot, 8-inch, 132 pound Hooters waitress in Michigan claims the "nearly world famous" restaurant believes her hooters aren't her only asset that's plenty big.

Twenty-year-old Cassandra "Cassie" Smith is contemplating legal action against Hooters after she was allegedly put on probation because of her weight.

Smith told The Detroit News that she was called into an office at Hooters for her yearly performance review. Both her assistant manager and general manger were present, as well as two females who were on conference call from the Hooters Headquarters in Atlanta, Ga.

Smith received a glowing review about her demeanor with customers and colleagues, but didn't do so well in the "uniform fitting" department.

Since the start of her employment, she has worn the company issued shirt and shorts in extra small. "I was confused because I don't wear the biggest uniform size," Smith told The Detroit News.

"I'm not overweight by any means," she told paper. "If anything ... I've been losing weight."

Smith says the ladies offered her a free gym membership and told the blonde bombshell that she had 30 days to improve her appearance, and if in 60 days she failed to comply she could be terminated, reports the Detroit News.

Mike McNeil, the Vice President of Marketing at Hooters of America, released a statement saying, "We will not make any comment on a current employee except to say that no employee in Michigan has been counseled about their weight...However, we will say that our practice of upholding an image standard based on appearance, attitude, and fitness for Hooters Girls is both legal and fair. It is not unlike the standard used by the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders or the Radio City Music Hall Rockettes."

The question remains...how big is too big at Hooters?

What do you think? Did Hooters have the right to fire her for her weight?

MEDIA
PICTURES: Cassie Smith Too Fat For Hooters?




Add a Comment See all 77 Comments
by NCPeach May 27, 2010 3:43 PM EDT
I didn't make it through all of the comments so someone may have already posted about this, but people need to know this. I myself do not work for Hooters but know several girls and even managers that still do. If Hooters feels that a girl does not fit into her uniform as well as she did at first (this can be because the girl stops working out - she may weigh the same or less but is not in shape) they put her on what's called a "30 Day Action Plan" - they can get away with this because there is never any mention of weight (that's why they put them on a conference call with the ladies at the corporate office to ensure the wording is legally correct) - it's about "fit of the uniform" - there can be a girl that's a size 6 or 8 working there and "fit" better into the uniform than a girl that's a size 2 or 4 if they're in shape. So no they did not put Cassie on a "weight loss" plan.

However, in my personal opinion I feel like it's a cruddy policy and all of that, but even though their food has improved over the years the majority of people go there to see beautiful women and "Hooters". She looks like an attractive girl & is not fat by any stretch of the imagination, but does look like she could use some toning - if you put yourself in a position to be looked at like that you're putting yourself into a position to be judged (not that it's right but it's what happens unfortunately).

Hooters girls are put on action plans ALL the time around the country so it's nothing new they've come up with, I'll be very surprised if Cassie wins the suit - has she stopped to think about what implication this will have on her future careers? I wish her the best, she's not fat but may not look like she can work at Hooters - she should have done like every other girl that gets put on an action plan and taken the free gym membership, worked out to show improvement over the following 30 days - then she would've kept her job (instead of running out and quitting - she was not fired) and looked even better for the summer.

Moral of my short novel here - I don't necessarily agree with many of Hooters' practices but it is what it is - Cassie should get her facts straight and quit telling everyone it was a "weight" issue - and don't put yourself in a position where you make more money or your job depends on your looks if you're not willing to keep it up.
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by daniellejudith May 23, 2010 11:04 PM EDT
i remember when i was 5'6" and 125lbs. i felt so skinny. they are saying that she is too fat at 132 and 5'8"? insane
Reply to this comment
by JackSu May 23, 2010 8:58 PM EDT
Women come in all sizes and shapes, and men like it that way. However the owners of this business say women must be a certain wieght to match the image they are portraying. It is there business, so their call. (Great they will give her a free membership to a gym. That is probably all it will take.) Anyway is it any different then a baseball team letting go a player who can not run as fast or hit as good etc?
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by satmarti May 22, 2010 1:09 PM EDT
I agree that she does not appear to be 132 lbs. and 5'8" based on her pictures. Either she is shorter or weighs more than that. Hooters probably has the right to fire her, and the VP is exactly right.
Reply to this comment
by jimatmadison May 22, 2010 10:09 AM EDT
Most men like curves.

Men who like women that are built like 12 year old boys tend to be fashion designers who strive to find women whose build allows their clothes to hang the same on their bony bodies as they do on the clothes hanger in the store.
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by taxedmore May 22, 2010 9:53 AM EDT
she can hoot for me
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by pak31 May 21, 2010 11:13 PM EDT
I am NOT a superficial person by any means, but this girl is not attractive in her face at all. As far as her figure is concerned, I find it hard to believe that she is 5'8" and 132. It's possible but I think more than anything she's out of shape. Her body is not what I would expect to see at a Hooters restaurant. I'd say her body is average.
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by jimatmadison May 22, 2010 9:49 AM EDT
Not superficial at all. :) ;) :)
by bigreddog222 May 21, 2010 12:09 PM EDT
What's the problem? She is HOT.
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by shirleyvince May 21, 2010 11:44 AM EDT
Cassie looks great, not fat at all, but I think those pictures must be Cassie's mom because she looks 45 not 20. Her neck, eyes and thighs are clearly over 40 or she's been living hard. 132 is very thin for 5'8'' but I would guess her weight at at least 145. The numbers just don't jive with the pictures.
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by bobnjersey May 21, 2010 2:37 PM EDT
[... but I think those pictures must be Cassie's mom because she looks 45 not 20. Her neck, eyes and thighs are clearly over 40 or she's been living hard. ]

there's likely to be less than 1% of the female population that looks like this woman does at the age of 45. the odds are strongly against your assessment.
by pbaird2 May 21, 2010 11:27 AM EDT
The pictures indicate her abs need tightening as her paunch is pooching. An attractive woman but not the image the sexist massagonists are looking for.
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