Smaller Businesses Looking to Human Workers, Not AI, to Boost Productivity
Now's the Time for Budget Brands to Target Luxury Shoppers
What a Successful Brick-and-Mortar Strategy Looks Like in 2024
How 3 Female Entrepreneurs Are Making Strides in Finance's Male-Dominated Landscape
The Key Bridge Collapse Means $2 Million a Day in Lost Worker Wages
Welcome to Founder Focus
Inc.com columnist Alison Green answers questions about workplace and management issues--everything from how to deal with a micromanaging boss to how to talk to someone on your team about body odor.
A reader asks:
I work at an up-and-coming, techy, midrange e-comm company that's always felt very inclusive, fun, and positive. Most employees are male and between the ages of 25 and 35, and prone to ribbing and bets -- "grow out your mullet for a year for $1,500," that type of thing.
One of our employees bears a striking resemblance to the Jesus often portrayed in kid's Bibles: long wavy brown hair, soft eyes, big beard. Because of this, his unofficial nickname used throughout the company is "Jesus."
I'm assuming he was involved in a bet of some sort, because today he walked in decked out in full vestments -- long white robes, Hebrew embroidered on the chest, sandals, the whole costume. A few people laughed, and he got right to work at his desk.
I'm a fierce proponent of free speech and believe there's value in cheeky pokes at things we often put on pedestals, like religion. That being said, it seems inappropriate to me to lampoon a religious figure in a work environment. What would you do? Am I being too sensitive?
Green responds:
You're not being too sensitive.
There's a different standard for what kind of jokes you can make at work. Things that would be seen 100 percent as good-natured fun in your social circle can end up being inappropriate in a work context, where you have a captive audience of people who probably come from a bunch of different backgrounds and walks of life. You've got varying religions (and degrees of religiosity), races, ages, gender, economic backgrounds, sexual orientation, and so forth. And an employer has a strong interest in ensuring that they all feel reasonably comfortable and respected.
That's why jokes that touch on religion (or sex, or so forth) aren't smart at work, even if they might be fine in a different context, and even if you're talking to just one person whom you're sure will find it hilarious -- because a) you can't be sure that's true (it's really common for people to laugh along when they're uncomfortable because they feel awkward speaking up) and b) you have no idea if others may overhear it, or hear it attributed to you later.
So, back to the employee. It's possible everyone who saw him took the joke in the spirit it was intended, rather than as hostile to anyone's sincerely held religious beliefs.
But if there's even one employee at your company who's already feeling like their religion has been disrespected or has set them apart in some way, you can imagine this feeling like another blow. That's not good for the company, legally or morale-wise -- and as companies mature, they usually figure that out over time, which is why you see many companies become increasingly conservative about this kind of humor. That's also part of why you generally see much looser cultures at start-ups -- they haven't had the experiences yet that will nudge them into realizing the land mines this stuff can pose.
When you put those two viewpoints together, you get one side perceived as offensive or insensitive and the other side perceived as sticks-in-the-mud -- but when smart companies have to pick between those options, they pick the latter.
(Also, for what it's worth: What's going on with your hiring that's produced a company staffed nearly exclusively by men of a certain age? Does that stem from choices you're making in your hiring? Candidates self-selecting out because of something about your culture? Something's going on there that's worth looking at, especially if you plan to grow.)
Want to submit a question of your own? Send it to alison@askamanager.org.
Now accepting applications for Inc.’s Best Workplace awards. Apply by February 16 for your chance to be featured!
A refreshed look at leadership from the desk of CEO and chief content officer Stephanie Mehta
Privacy Policy
My Employee Came to Work Dressed as Jesus
2
0
02.04.2024
Smaller Businesses Looking to Human Workers, Not AI, to Boost Productivity
Now's the Time for Budget Brands to Target Luxury Shoppers
What a Successful Brick-and-Mortar Strategy Looks Like in 2024
How 3 Female Entrepreneurs Are Making Strides in Finance's Male-Dominated Landscape
The Key Bridge Collapse Means $2 Million a Day in Lost Worker Wages
Welcome to Founder Focus
Inc.com columnist Alison Green answers questions about workplace and management issues--everything from how to deal with a micromanaging boss to how to talk to someone on your team about body odor.
A reader asks:
I work at an up-and-coming, techy, midrange e-comm company that's always felt very inclusive, fun, and positive. Most employees are male and between the ages of 25 and 35, and prone to ribbing and bets -- "grow out your mullet for a year for $1,500," that type of thing.
One of our employees bears a striking resemblance to the Jesus often portrayed in kid's Bibles: long wavy brown hair, soft........
© Inc.com
visit website
login
who are we?
contact us
qosheapp
Toi Staff
Gideon Levy
Belen Fernandez
Andrew Mitrovica
Mort Laitner
Rami G Khouri
Ali Fathollah-Nejad
Nikkei Editorial
