Tall man rejected by prospective employers

Young, healthy and with good references, New Plymouth's (New Zealand) Mike Barrell sounds like he'd be a good employee. He wants to work, but says he has been constantly rejected by prospective employers in the city because they say he is too tall. Standing at 2.1 metres, or six foot 10 inches, the former vineyard worker and labourer told the New Zealand Daily News that he had been trying for three months to find work after a fixed-term contract with a local landscaping business ended. Before that, he spent seven years working for Montana Wines in Blenheim.

 "I've gone for at least half a dozen jobs since then. But everyone is judging me by my height, telling me I'd be fine for the job, if I was a shorter. "I'm sick of it really." New Zealand employment law forbids any employer discriminating against workers because of their height but Mr Barrell said he was not prepared to take legal action against potential bosses for rejecting him. He just hopes that someone will give him a chance. Mr Barrell said the main misconception among potential employers was that very tall people had back problems.