True Story - work buddy busted

[johnplav]

The company should have a straight forward policy on what is acceptable and what isn't.

As I was trained, for touching like this to be harassment it would need to be 1) intentional and 2) unwanted.

It sounds like this was intentional but not unwanted. 

As for being brought forward by witnesses and prompting an investigation, previous comments are correct. 

 

[Nomad]

I’ve had sexual harassment, diversity , work place violence training every year on the FD . Then they put out this Calendar, photo shoots done in firehouses and sold out of them . 

Im not sure why they didn’t call me back for  the shoot .

[rachunter]

I’ve had sexual harassment, diversity , work place violence training every year on the FD . Then they put out this Calendar, photo shoots done in firehouses and sold out of them . 
Im not sure why they didn’t call me back for  the shoot .

Do they use real firemen or bring in models. I saw a thing on a taxicab driver calendar. They where not models


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[Nomad]

On the job guys yes .

Seems contradictory’s to all policies, I couldn’t  hang   a photo of a woman with her pants pulled down low like that at work , without being told to take it down and told to reread the sexual harassment policy .

But they’ve never been known for being  consistent .

[Lever action]

This crap is getting so out of hand.So glad I only have a couple more years to work.40 years ago I worked for an aerospace company.I worked with a lot of women.Us guys joked around with the women and they joked around a lot with us , all in fun and made the day go by faster.Now days if you did what we did you would be in a world of sh*t.So glad I grew up when I did.

[rachunter]

If they followed those policies on my job there’d wouldn’t be anyone left including the boss!!!

I liked the term “elevator eyes” and do it to my boss all the time HE get so pissed. 

[ny hunter]

TOTAL BS..........We are all in trouble....

[Hock3y24]

1 hour ago, Biz-R-OWorld said:

I just wear a body cam 24/7 

Same, but only 8 hours while working. Those things save our asses.

[JRod 8G8H]

Disgusting world we live in. But that's true if it is observed and not necessarily reported by the woman it is still improper.

Now what? Employee sues employer looking for a settlement/hush money. Happened at my work....

[moog5050]

Absent other conduct, as described it’s not actionable.   But it’s not a good idea as that coupled with other incidents it could become actionable.    It could also be a violation of company policy whether actionable or not.  At least that’s my non legal not giving legal advice thoughts.    

[grampy]

There is less and less human interaction now, just from the time I was a kid. We now communicate with devices, and do not touch each other. Kinda sad I think. Now everyone is considered a weirdo if they touch someone else.

I get it though. I'm employed by a public school district. And we have all sorts of mandatory training, for how to act appropriately with students and other staff members. And any kind of touching could be conceived, potentially as sexual harassment, or unwanted. And is discouraged. I have wonderful female colleagues that I've worked with for 15 years, and we will high five, or fist bump, to thank or encourage each other. But that's it in a professional environment. Not worth taking a chance of anything being taken the wrong way. And that's especially with a student. 

Funny though when I was in school, the shop teacher would mess up our hair and call us boneheads. We loved him. The math teacher would come to your desk, put an arm over your shoulder, and help explain how to get the right numbers. We all loved her. The principal had a wooden paddle for those who occasionally, like me, misbehaved. I deserved it. We respected him.

No such thing anymore. For good or bad.

 

[Merlot]

4 hours ago, Al Bundy said:

My coworker tells me this story which happened at work.  He was walking by a woman hes known and friends with 10+ years.  It appears she has a new tattoo so he stops and talks to her about it. At some point he reached out and touched her shoulder with his finger, where the new tattoo was. Next day hes called into HR office and there is now a complaint filed against him by two people who observed this "improper" touching. It made them uncomfortable..... The woman with the tattoo was not at all in the slightest unhappy or thinking anything was improper. Even now she cant believe someone complained about that.  Cant really believe this happened.  Be careful... 

He should be flogged and sent to charm school for reprogramming. 

[cbyzerman]

Who ever thinks that is sexual harassment does not have a di-- and is just as much wacko as they are.............

[cbyzerman]

Some people are touchy feely in a conversation which I can not stand, some people are close talkers which i Really can not stand.... these people can not help certain situations they do not even know they are doing it....  That is not sexual harassment...........

[Bolt action]

To Moog's point, actionable v. Against company policy.  Corporations are so afraid of lawsuits claiming that their lax policies allowed an environment where harassment was ok that they create corporate "zero tolerance" policies. These effectively create a workplace where any touching, a lot of joking, and most signs of sympathy or empathy, are prohibited.

[Taylormike]

It's all about common sense, this should not be considered sexual harassment, especially when the person involved was a friend and didn't mind.  This stuff has gotten so out of hand. I guess the two people that over heard will not be running in the turkey trot Thursday.  14000 runners packed in like sardines.

[Pygmy]

Another example of why I am glad I am getting old and will not have to put up with such cheap liberal ass BS much longer....

And besides that, I think all lawyers should be horsewhipped, and then drawn and quartered, except for my good friend Moog, of course...

[Pygmy]

4 hours ago, Nomad said:

I’ve had sexual harassment, diversity , work place violence training every year on the FD . Then they put out this Calendar, photo shoots done in firehouses and sold out of them . 

Im not sure why they didn’t call me back for  the shoot .

I wish you hadn't posted that, Larry...The Mermaid didn't know I was in Rochester that weekend, until now....<<sigh>>….

[nyslowhand]

9 hours ago, phade said:

.....I have around 200 people in my org. The rules of the road are many. Best practice is to avoid the pot holes altogether. I shake hands with people and that's it. I can count on one hand how many times I've hugged a peer and it's never initiated by me, and in a social setting. I have too much to lose by frivolous actions so I don't even allow myself to be in that position. I have a harder time in discussion because of my rural background - once I'm comfortable, I put alot of trust in people. I have to constantly remind myself to make sure what I say is not misinterpreted....

This is absolutely true, but unfortunately very sad also! I've taken on the exact same limiting personality traits and it's not really me. Sort of puts you in a clam shell you didn't create or want to live in!

I blame this phenomena on the internet, absolutely very little inter-personal interactions or communications anymore. Things people say or opinions expressed are rudely criticized on social media sites that normally would not be said when face-to-face interactions occur.

JMO, but I feel the Diversity Training is a crock of crap. It is NOT alright to say things or touch others in an inappropriate manner, but it's just common sense for the 98% of us!! What we need is a refresher for the "Things I learned in kindergarten"!!!

[Uncle Nicky]

The world has changed. When I worked in a kitchen and in a supermarket meat room, we joked a lot with the girls, had Playboy calendars hanging on the wall, nobody thought much of it. 

Fast-forward 25 years now to the corporate job I am at, I have seen a number of instances that make me shake my head. We have a young, pretty girl in the office who dresses every day like she is going clubbing, yet she's filed 2 complaints with HR already (there about 4 years) about guys "staring at" or "stalking" her...one of the guys was let go. Needless to say, I give her a wide berth. So glad retirement is on the near horizon, I feel sorry for anyone young starting out in the current work environment.

[crappyice]

This is absolutely true, but unfortunately very sad also! I've taken on the exact same limiting personality traits and it's not really me. Sort of puts you in a clam shell you didn't create or want to live in!
I blame this phenomena on the internet, absolutely very little inter-personal interactions or communications anymore. Things people say or opinions expressed are rudely criticized on social media sites that normally would not be said when face-to-face interactions occur.
JMO, but I feel the Diversity Training is a crock of crap. It is NOT alright to say things or touch others in an inappropriate manner, but it's just common sense for the 98% of us!! What we need is a refresher for the "Things I learned in kindergarten"!!!

Ok, but one of those things we learn in kindergarten is, “keep your hands to yourself.”


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[LET EM GROW]

We have sexual harassment training  like twice a year, must be they are catching on to me...  There are some new laws NYS developed starting this month or maybe it was january.. that even outside of work ir you approach an employee or a seen with an employee and someone felt uncomfortable they can have action taken against you, and this state is not going easy n harassment cases. Its really messed up. People were losing their cool with how uncomfortable this state is making every situation anymore.. It really is messed up.. 

[NYBowhunter]

12 hours ago, cbyzerman said:

Who ever thinks that is sexual harassment does not have a di-- and is just as much wacko as they are.............

Its not a matter of do we think, its knowing company policy and not putting yourself into that situation.  As innocent as you may think this is, it can warrant an investigation by HR. 

[cynthiafu]

I have a friend who is a nurse and he is the greatest. Well he likes to say hi and rub your shoulder  .  He got called into the office for the same thing . They dropped the case but warned him to not do that again. 

[Pygmy]

When one little panda sticks his furry little winkie into another little panda's ear, THAT's sexual harassment, and that makes me a SAAAAD Panda  !