I would have asked for a list of all the offensive words and phrases not allowed to “better understand” what is allowed and not allowed.
“I would have asked for a list of all the offensive words and phrases not allowed to “better understand” what is allowed and not allowed.”
We had to sign a (as I recall) 10 page “ethics” statement. For example, we could not, under any circumstances, tell a joke. (I asked why and the HR lady said in a horrified voice, “you have no idea who you might offend.”) If you read it carefully, you were only allowed to talk about work related topics. I pointed out I was at lunch and the VP said he’d used that argument, but being offensive is being offensive. At my level, Program Manager of a $54 million dollar project, they really didn’t do write-ups. And, if they didn’t write me up they couldn’t write up the machinist. The VP asked me to make his life easier by not antagonizing the PC monitor (HR) and he was serious as they reported up a different political chain and could cause him grief. He was really embarrassed about the whole thing. incidentally, it was the most sterile uninviting environment I’d ever experienced. I described it to a Russian friend and he said he’d had more freedom in the old Sovient Union than we had in our corporate lives.