Suspended, Sent To Sensitivity Training - Be Careful What You Say!

[retdetsgt]

I was taught in my sexual harrasment training (oops, I mean course) that even so much as opening a door for a female could be considered sexual harrasment. I must be dumb, igorant, or both because I thought that was called chivalry. Apparently not now. :rolleyes:

You're instructor was full of it. There is no way in hell that could be intrepreted as making for a hostile work environment. If there's a man walking close behind me and I go through a door, I'll hold it for them rather than let it slam in their face. And that doesn't mean I'm gay.

The cases we've had go forward for sexual harassment, I have to admit were fairly blatant. When I heard the details of just about all of them, I had to slap my forehead in disbelief that a male employee could be that dumb.

I was in the last all male academy in my dept. There were some legitimate cases I saw where women took a lot of crap they shouldn't have to. That being said though, I went way out of my way to keep my relationships with any of them strictly professional.

[mxwelch]

I went to sexual harassment training one year that was taught by a female lawyer.
I remember coming away from that training thinking that the work enviroment she was describing was so "sterile" that it probably doesn't exist. I thought that even her office probably wasn't as free of sexual innuendo and joking as she said the workplace should be.

We had an incident on the job that triggered them to come back and give everyone a refresher on sexual harassment.

I was sitting in the room when a different (male) lawyer walked in to give us the training. This guy in the room decided to be funny and said, "Where's the broad that taught it last time? Man she was stacked." I guess that he figured that since the instructor would think he was funny - he figured wrong.

Note to all: Don't joke about women in an insulting fashion at sexual harassment training. ;)

It sounded like a compliment to me.:D

[TXCharlie]

Your instructor was full of it.

You can always count on RDS to tell it like it is :p

[Group9]

What exactly do they do to you in sensitivity training? Has anyone ever attended sensitivity training that was useful or interesting? Or is it just seen as a punishment you have to sit through, and not something that's actually useful?

I know an agent who holds the distiction of being the only agent to get days off for an inappropriate comment made while he was TEACHING a sensitivity class. He was giving an example of some borderline things that guys might say around the water cooler that could be viewed as sexually demeaning or harrassing. Turns out he was right. One of the female basic agent trainees found his use of the borderline things demeaning and harrassing and filed a complaint.

He got three days off without pay and a seat on the unofficial agent's Hall of Fame. :D

[Nole795]

I went to a class and learned that saying to a woman, "You have a nice dress on." can be considered sexual harassment, and you could get days on the beach for the comment. Apparantly, it is all in the way the "victim" percieves your comment.

Get this, for federal standards, a "complainant" can make a complaint against you, and it will be on your record for the life of your career. Yet there is no markings against the complainant who filed the complaint. The EEOC made it this way so it would not discourage "victims" from making a report. So you could have someone who is gunning for a lawsuit make all types of complaints and technically there is nothing on his/her record.

[cntryboy0531]

I remember my sensitivity training in the academy. It was hillarious. We all made fun of stereotypes in class. We had a black deputy sheriff teach our class and he was friggin hillarious. He went around the room and made everyone pull out a stereotype from the race/ethnic group/social group we were currently talking about. They got to the "hillbillies" and I had my turn, I said "they don't talk right". At which time the entire class went silent, they turned around and looked at me, and one of the assclowns from the front said "aint that the truth" in reference to me. It's ok, I called his mom a ho in the next one. :D

Of course, when we were doing the black stereotype, and finished with it, the instructor wanted to know why we didn't pull out the "Black men are STACKED" stereotype. It was hillarious.

[shorty26]

Get this, for federal standards, a "complainant" can make a complaint against you, and it will be on your record for the life of your career. Yet there is no markings against the complainant who filed the complaint. The EEOC made it this way so it would not discourage "victims" from making a report. So you could have someone who is gunning for a lawsuit make all types of complaints and technically there is nothing on his/her record.

Very true, my father is an employee of the Federal Government, and he had a complaint filed against him. He was talking to a co-worker about my mother, who had recently had a hysterectomy. The complaintant overheard this discussion and lodged complaints against both my father and the guy he was talking to. The feds didn't care to hear his side of the story. The complaint stayed on his file. But, the woman eventually had filed so many complaints against almost every male in the office that the unions got involved and were able to get her transferred and everyones records corrected.

Sometimes in the drive to curb legitimate sexual harrassment, rights are taken away. Complaints are no longer investigated, just taken. I wish we could just get back to common sense.

As far as the original topic, how did the department know it was the officers? Did they post their names and who they worked for?

[Nole795]

Very true, my father is an employee of the Federal Government, and he had a complaint filed against him. He was talking to a co-worker about my mother, who had recently had a hysterectomy. The complaintant overheard this discussion and lodged complaints against both my father and the guy he was talking to. The feds didn't care to hear his side of the story. The complaint stayed on his file. But, the woman eventually had filed so many complaints against almost every male in the office that the unions got involved and were able to get her transferred and everyones records corrected.

Third party complaints is the one of the biggest load of garbage that the EEOC came out with. Imagine a person who is not even a part of the conversation who makes a complaint because of something he/she overheard. Ridiculous. I realize there are some situations where this policy may have some relevance, but the manner that I have seen it used makes me stick to my rule...KYA (Know your Audience).

[NightVampire]

Third party complaints is the one of the biggest load of garbage that the EEOC came out with. Imagine a person who is not even a part of the conversation who makes a complaint because of something he/she overheard. Ridiculous. I realize there are some situations where this policy may have some relevance, but the manner that I have seen it used makes me stick to my rule...KYA (Know your Audience).

I disagree.

Just because you are not "part of the conversation" does not mean that the conversation is not offensive, inappropriate, and wrong.

Imagine two male co-workers standing around the water cooler talking about their sexual exploits in vivid detail and how big the chests of various women in the workplace are - with other co-workers walking past and hearing every word.

So they have no right to be offended because they are not even part of the conversation?

[Valor55]

What exactly do they do to you in sensitivity training? Has anyone ever attended sensitivity training that was useful or interesting? Or is it just seen as a punishment you have to sit through, and not something that's actually useful?

[oscarmitre]

Sensitivity training sounds like it's useless. People's attitudes aren't changed because of training, no matter how good the material or how good the trainer. All that can be done is that they be advised of expected behaviour and what behaviour is in unacceptable and then monitor their behaviour. The attitudes may change over time but it's that individual that will decide to change them. Behaviour, well that should change immediately after advice or there'll be more than sensitivity training coming after them.

[Creeker]

Sensitivity training sounds like it's useless. People's attitudes aren't changed because of training, no matter how good the material or how good the trainer. All that can be done is that they be advised of expected behaviour and what behaviour is in unacceptable and then monitor their behaviour. The attitudes may change over time but it's that individual that will decide to change them. Behaviour, well that should change immediately after advice or there'll be more than sensitivity training coming after them.

I tend to agree.

In my mind, Sense Training is basically a way for the employer to avoid liability. If you to treat people decent, don't get into the Gossip Clatch at the water cooler and just do your job, you shouldn't have a problem.

IME, Cops working around the Office sometimes have a much more (jobwise) hazardous work environment than those in the street... unless you are a dolt with a female partner, or decide to play "Grab Ass" wiith the wrong fellow Cop.

[retdetsgt]

I went to a class and learned that saying to a woman, "You have a nice dress on." can be considered sexual harassment, and you could get days on the beach for the comment. Apparantly, it is all in the way the "victim" percieves your comment.

Get this, for federal standards, a "complainant" can make a complaint against you, and it will be on your record for the life of your career. Yet there is no markings against the complainant who filed the complaint. The EEOC made it this way so it would not discourage "victims" from making a report. So you could have someone who is gunning for a lawsuit make all types of complaints and technically there is nothing on his/her record.

I can understand the first paragraph. If you say something like, "Nice dress, that's pretty" in a nonchalant way, it would taken as a compliment. However if you say it with drool running down your lip kinda like Homer Simpson saying, "Beeeerrrrr", it could well be a sexual thing.

When I was working a task force with the FBI, there were several agencies involved, including a Hispanic guy from INS. We were sitting around the office one night and were trying to decide where to go eat. One young FBI agent, fairly fresh out of college remarked, "I don't care where we go, but I just don't want anymore beaner food." The INS guy, who was kind of a dipshit IMO anyway, threw a complaint and the young SA got sent back to DC for some sort of ass chewing and orientation. He came back pretty humble. Maybe it was a dumb thing to say, I wouldn't have in front of the INS guy, but it hardly seemed worth what they did to him.

[imalazypup]

And I quote a complaint made by a recruit in the academy before mine...


"cussing has no place in law enforcement"

I don't believe that recruit will make it far in this field.

[Creeker]

... One young FBI agent, fairly fresh out of college remarked, "I don't care where we go, but I just don't want anymore beaner food." The INS guy, who was kind of a dipshit IMO anyway, threw a complaint and the young SA got sent back to DC for some sort of ass chewing and orientation. He came back pretty humble. Maybe it was a dumb thing to say, I wouldn't have in front of the INS guy, but it hardly seemed worth what they did to him.

We have to cut the little "fibber" a break. He was watching too much Carlos Mencia.