NORTH TEXAS (CBSDFW.COM) – Even as US waistlines have been expanding for years, Texas DPS Troopers have new incentives to stay trim: they could lose pay, promotions – even their jobs.
“It’s the physical portion and the appearance portion,” said Richard Jankovsky, President of the DPS Officers Association, of the agency’s “Health, Physical Fitness and Command Presence Policy.” “And I believe that the belly measurement portion is about vanity.”
Jankovsky says the association is fully supportive of fitness standards. But now in addition to passing physical fitness tests twice a year, DPS troopers’ waistlines must also measure up. For men, waists larger than 40 inches and for women, waists larger than 35 inches prompt a monitored weight management plan.
“I can tell you that I know three [troopers] that have gone to Mexico to get gastric bypass surgery because of fear of losing their jobs that they’re not in compliance,” said Jankovsky. “I had one female member tell me they’ve delayed having a family because of the aftereffects of childbirth… the fear of not being in compliance. It’s an added stressor, knowing that they have passed the physical portion of it, but they don’t look a certain way.”
The new policy was enacted back in 2019, survived a legal challenge from the association, and, following a COVID-19 pause, is making headlines once again.
“I believe if you’re passing the physical fitness test, it’s irrelevant,” said Jankovsky. “I don’t believe you’re going to find any data anywhere that is going to support saying you cannot be a law enforcement professional if you are over 40 as a male and 35 as a female. I don’t think you’re going to find any data anywhere to support that.”