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Christians and Conservatives Harassed by Employee Harassment Training
Today at work I completed an hour-long employee harassment training advertised as requiring 30 minutes. Now I’d like to know who to report the harassment of my harassment training to.
I work for a small company with fewer than 50 employees, but we were purchased by an aggregator a couple of years ago (based in another state) and now we’re getting the treatment you expect from a large company. Our little team has some long-timers who have moved around together and reformed after the big company purchasers started imposing Big Stupid. We’re highly specialized and use materials not easily relocated, which makes the breakaway possible. I suspected our small group would not bend to this nonsense — at least we’d take our time about it, since we know each other well and are respectful without needing a periodic struggle session.
However, according to the training, these are federally protected minorities based on race, sex, ethnicity, gender identity, and “religion” — by which they obviously mean any religion not Judaism or Christianity and their basis in reality. These laws are not meant to protect me from being bullied into using someone’s “preferred pronouns” (which, btw, if you make up some snarky preferred pronouns (mine would be “the correct ones”), you’re the one guilty of discrimination/harassment).
I’m reading Essays of a Catholic by Hilaire Belloc, in which his first essay is on the New Paganism. In it he expounds on doctrine being the fountainhead of politics and law. And, as it relates to Christianity, I note that the Church’s right understanding of human anthropology has been overthrown by the new paganism such that a woman is what someone feels about himself/herself apart from his/her biological reality. To which I have one response — Nuts!
Now, I’m in a position to quit this job if the harassment continues or worsens. But, I feel for young people living in such an insane world — my kids among them. They’re being bullied into lefty, post-Christian paganism — which is much worse than the ancient variety, since we in the West know what works for human dignity and flourishing and are throwing it all away.
Published in General
Yes, that’s what the Party requires,
WinstonWestern. You must pretend to believe, and you’d better be convincing.My sister’s company was bought up by a larger one and is subjected to the same thing. HR feminists have ruined the work environment for most sane people. Just let us do our jobs, please. Our mothers taught us to be nice to our fellow human beings and that’s all that matters.
The struggle sessions where I worked started a few years before I retired. When it was a large group, around 100 participants, it was fairly easy to ignore the nonsense. During Covid it was fairly easy to ignore most of the zoom meeting nonsense. But then, they began meeting in smaller groups. In circles. (Let me tell you how much I loathe circles. Never mind, take too much time.) There was more of an expectation to participate. In one, I started to get involved in the discussions, realized how pointless any opposing point of view would be, and shut down. I visited with my supervisor after that, told her that I would not be attending another session like that because I believed the New Age aspects were simply a form of paganism in which I would not participate. Some were more neutral, focused on education rather than workery (yes, really), or I happened to be sick on those days. But nearer my retirement, I was assigned to a session (in a circle!) which basically started out as a therapy session to explore our feelings about our whiteness. When it got to my turn, I said “I cannot do this” and walked out. I went to my office to catch up on my actual work, and my supervisor came up to talk with me later. I again explained that I have work to do and was not interested in a group therapy session with strangers (albeit colleagues that I knew). She did not force the issue, and I am glad I was able to retire before it got worse. There were few of my co-workers who understood what the big deal was, or why my reaction was so strong. I believe that if a few more workers would just get up and leave, some of this would cease.
I know the labor market is not as tight as it was a couple of years ago, but I’m probably not the only older potential worker who looked at all the woke and DEI nonsense in corporate America and decided to stay out of the paid labor force (employee or consulting). So I have no sympathy for companies that complain how hard it is to find experienced workers. Companies chased us away.
I’m so gonna get fired. I’ve already decided I’ll quit if they insist on tagging our email signatures with our “preferred pronouns.” I’d miss the people and the work, but it has me thinking about the ethics of cottage industries — working for oneself providing goods and services people are willing to pay for.
Exactly. We’re becoming uncivilized in our new paganism.
I had one of those sessions before I retired from a public university. Attendance, of course, was mandatory. It was as offensive as it was stupid, and all I could think of to do was to sit there silently counting down the minutes until I could go back to my office and do real work.
That was a decade ago; today I’m sure it would be much worse.
Eventually only women will be working for these companies, and NOTHING will get done.
The harassment of certain groups that happens in anti-harassment training is the entire purpose of anti-harassment training. Here is a piece of advice from someone who worked for two very large companies where this sort of training was required. Show up, fill out the sign-in sheet, sit down in the back of the room, and leave ten minutes into it. Your attendance will be recorded, and you can get back to doing your job while treating everyone else with respect, like you always have, without being lectured to for an hour like you are a five-year-old who doesn’t understand how to treat everyone else with respect.
Sorry about that. I’m going to get riffed later this year, which will be the best thing that’s happened to me at work for the last two years. I like my people too, will keep in touch with all of them.
I’m looking for something responsible to do. Software, networks, that kind of thing. There’s a way to bring down Gangrene and Fakebook, and I bet somebody is already working on it.
Might be pretty good if you were getting up towards retirement anyway, and if there’s some kind of generous severance package.
Hilarious! I’m with an engineering firm and the ratio of men to women on the production side is about 8 to 1. Nothing would already get done without the men!
play their game. Make your preferred pronouns something absolutely bizarre. I loved the engineer students who used “Sikorsky” and “Helicopter”, and added they can also address you as “Chopper” or “Whirlybird”.
And they darn well better adhere to their own rules.
For the record, I have written these in on Medical information sheets, when I have met with doctors who make you update your profile every single visit.
There is a larger market for those who know actual stuff and who get tasks complete than you may imagine. I think there is no ethical detriment to going on that way. Your good customers will not think twice about going elsewhere for good work, capably delivered on time. You don’t owe your employer a thing other than performing your job properly. It would not hesitate to fire you if it thinks you aren’t. You’re the only one who will look after your family and your self. No circles.
I was informed that any snarky pronouns would be viewed as harassing or discriminatory toward ze/zir. /excruciating eyeroll
I’m questioning the ethics of wage labor, not home industry. There’s a downside to post-industrial capitalism. These kids entering the workforce need to be encouraged toward entrepreneurialism and home industry.
Fortunately we’re financially secure and I never needed this job. I was hired at Mr. C’s workplace to help out my boss (and our mutual friend), so I’d feel bad about leaving him in the lurch. I’ve called my job a “paid volunteer” position. But, yeah, no circles and no pronouns. It’s a non-negotiable with me. I won’t be bullied.
I’ve quit jobs because they decided everyone had to wear a tie, not just the salespeople were out in public and felt like it was somehow unfair to them.
That’s part of my take on “life is too short,” which for most people seems to mean “tolerate everything.
For me, it’s “tolerate NOTHING.”
that is very judgmental and discriminating of them. How DARE Ze?
You better hope you weren’t supposed to use Zir there.
As an attorney, I get a copy, want it or not, every month of my state bar association’s publication. One page lists any attorneys who have been the subject of professional discipline in the preceding month, which goes from a letter of reprimand to disbarment.
This past issue, what caught my eye was the abuse of the English language, to-wit: each disciplined attorney who did not have counsel to represent the attorney in the disciplinary proceedings, would be described as “[so and so, obviously male] represented themselves;” and “[so and so, obviously female] represented themselves.”
Egads. Why not just say the attorney appeared pro se???????? Oh, I guess that’s not politically correct enough. Gack.
I would have liked to quit, but we NEEDED my income. I felt like a loser after the struggle session, but dropping the job would put me into a position where I could not replace it. Academic hiring is all about who you know and what they will say about you. Dropping an application without somebody backing you up is totally pointless.
AUDad said his preferred pronouns were Sir and Mr. Parker. No one has asked him anymore. He works with children. Although we live in the relatively sane SC, the company is based in CA.
This is why walked away from teaching after a 30 year career…I put up with this garbage since the mid 1990’s but kept plugging along…and the students were many times as bad as my colleagues…but the final straw came in Fall of 2021 when I was trying to teach Thomas Sowell’s autobiography and got called out on it. Administration wanted to make sure I was teaching the “other” side….I asked if I was teaching the “other” side would you be asking me to teach Thomas Sowell or Booker T Washington…the answer was of course not….that was it for me…..
I would rather work draining septic systems than ever step foot in a class room again or any modern American company where I have to attend “meetings”.
It seems wrong for me to prefer some pronouns over others. I’m an equal opportunity user of pronouns.
(Yes, this is a serious problem. Maybe some anti-harassment lawsuits will help get it fixed. Maybe it won’t help.)
I told the “facilitator” (facilitating what, exactly) that I suffered from ANT – atrophied nonsense tolerance.
Fortunately, the company I work for has all training online, none in person. If you can sit through the online garbage, you just have to sign and go. Last week, I got through 14 different training modules without losing my mind, so there’s that. I did notice for the first time, that they require to use peoples’ preferred pronouns, but I don’t know anyone who actually does. And my situation is pretty nice, they need me more than I need them, so I can leave any time, and go back into retirement. I just happen to like the earned income, even if I pay through the nose for taxes now.
The only lurch happening is the introduction of Marxist struggle sessions. If he’s a friend I’d for sure call him on it. It will destroy his business. He’s not in any lurch if he’s enabling non-productive and destructive work during business hours.
As to post-industrial capitalism – that’s a long story, but I think there’s room for wage earners and independent workers. At its simplest point, there are many who could not drive their own work to profitability. Just as there are those who will never be able to have a more demanding job than stocking shelves or clearing at Walmart or a supermarket. One needs productive work and the other needs the work done. And most people need to start at the business of working by working for someone else and learning from that situation. As well – the more examples of people who work for themselves (at trades or profession) and support their family are evident and successful, the more young people will see incentive to try. One hopes. Being public about it now as an example of personal freedom may help to answer the many discouraging messages against freedom in all its conditions.
I think being able to answer YES to the question “Do you know anyone who has/knows how to ___” is very encouraging to someone who has never tried something new to them before.
I really think you should have a long talk with your friend. You might save his business or job.
He’s my boss. He doesn’t own the business. No one locally owns the business anymore. And if I’m forced out by the inanity, you better believe HR and anyone else in on the conversation is going to get an earful.
I agree with you completely about all the rest. Being of the engineering disposition, I see the efficiencies of corporate business. Being of the Christian mindset, it’s hard not to notice the inhumanity (and imposition of anti-Christian ideology) of large corporations. I’ve come to the conclusion that Big is Bad for people, and not just in Government.
There’s a localism movement afoot and I’m increasingly interested in how it might work.
I noticed several comments about being able to retire and walk away if things get too ridiculous.
Please don’t. Those of us in the middle of our careers need you to stay. The only way these companies will change is if the pain of staying the same is greater than the pain of changing. You are in the perfect position to make the pain of staying the same intolerable.
If you have the ability to retire: don’t.
Do not go quietly into the night. Drag them loudly into the daylight.
Force them to fire you. Then sue them for their harrassment. Repeatedly. In multiple venues.
Make their wokery odorous to themselves.
The pain of staying the same simply has to be increased to the point it can’t be ignored.
Yes. That’s the only way this will be corrected.
Today Catholics honor the martyrdom of St. Stephen, who was stoned for speaking the truth. We will not be called upon to make such a sacrifice (yet), but we are obliged to stand for the truth, even if it costs us our jobs.
Now I have to pray for the grace to speak truth in charity. I’m not feeling the love at the moment.