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Mette Jensen

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Should a person's racial and/ or aggressive behaviour in his free time be allowed to affect his work?

A man accused of slapping a toddler and directing a racial slur towards the boy on a flight from Minneapolis to Atlanta has been sacked as well as charged, his former employer has confirmed. Over reaction or just action?

Topics: Racism dismissal employment fair job leisure time racist work
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  • greg dahlen 20+

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    Feb 20 2013: Well, if he has only been charged, it would be premature to sack him, wouldn't it? Perhaps he is innocent.

    • Mette Jensen

      • 0
      Feb 21 2013: I agree, surely they should have waited until he was charged? Perhaps he could argue against the dismissal?

      • greg dahlen 20+

        • 0
        Feb 21 2013: Well, Mette, just because someone is charged does not mean they are guilty. Potentially a lot of stuff happens after someone is charged, they may be held in jail or prison, they may post bail, they may decide to admit guilt and accept some sort of plea deal, they may contest the charges and ask for a trial. Or the government sometimes drops the charges, they may decide the person didn't do it, or there is a lack of evidence.

        If someone has been charged and is being held, it could put an employer in a bad spot because the person if they are in jail being held, they can't come in to work every day. I would think an employer would not want to fire such a person because it's sort of like piling on, already they've been charged with a crime they may not have committed and now they're being fired to boot, it's a double whammy. However, some industries may move so fast that if a person is being held in jail a month maybe they get too far out of the loop, although it seems unlikely. I would think if the person ends up being not guilty of the charges or the charges are dropped which is like being not guilty, they could argue against the dismissal.

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