Being lean, tall and good-looking are three keys to a fatter paycheque, claims one new study.

Damn: And I was betting that people would see the inner beauty of the squat, the chubby and the homely. :)

Some excerpts from the Toronto Star story:

The study published in the April edition of The Regional Economist by the St. Louis Fed, one of 12 banks that make up the U.S. Federal Reserve system, suggests he was right, citing a "beauty premium" for those who are gorgeous and a "plainness penalty" for those who aren't.

Researchers Kristie Engemann and Michael Owyang — both, by the way, consider themselves average looking — completed a comprehensive review of research and analyses on the subject.

Citing economists Daniel Hamermesh and Jeff Biddle, the researchers said beautiful people tended to make an extra 5 per cent per hour, while those with "below average looks" tended to be penalized to the tune of 9 per cent per hour, after factoring out non-beauty issues such as education and experience.

Hamermesh also released a study this year finding more attractive university professors are rated higher by students. ...

Engemann and Owyang were not certain why such biases exist, but some research has suggested that more attractive people are more confident and communicate better.

Another possibility is that pretty people get breaks that others don't.

"It's a perceptual bias," said Dan Ondrack, professor of organizational behaviour at the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. "We tend to believe someone performs better because of their appearance."

And the higher wage, Ondrack said, is simply a manifestation of the bias.

I remember the wake of one downsizing; a manager took a call from someone and described the carnage and how many staff he had left. Then, in response to an apparent question, and with obvious relief, the manager said, "Oh no, (Person A) and (Person B) are really good looking."

Thank goodness the mutts were tossed overboard, I say.

Oddly enough, the only other person who survived was the manager's best lunch buddy! :)

Perhaps the lesson is this: If you can't be good-looking, be a good crony. And if you aren't a dazzler and have poor cronying instincts, you can always try being good at your job. :)