“Women Are Designed To Serve And Obey”: Sexist Boss Gets What He Deserves When Employee Humiliates Him In Front Of The CEO
There’s no excuse for sexism in the workplace. And you’d think that members of the older generation would know to be gentlemen and to treat women with respect. Unfortunately, the opposite seems to be true in some companies.
Redditor u/dracula912 shared a story about how his 21-year-old niece quit her job with a bang. Or rather, a slap! The young woman had gotten a job as a secretary at a tax and accounting firm. However, there were plenty of red flags from day one.
Her boss, the managers, and coworkers were extremely sexist, patronizing, and dismissive. Things came to a head during one meeting when her boss put a hand on her shoulder while explaining that she needed to be “more compliant” at work. She couldn’t take it anymore. Scroll down for the full story, dear Pandas.
A 21-year-old secretary had to deal with constant sexism and harassment from her older male colleagues
Image credits: Sam Edwards (not the actual photo)
Things came to a head during one work meeting when she decided that enough was enough
Image credits: dracula912
When you read the entire story, you wonder how anyone could ever thrive or even survive in such a toxic workplace. The people there are horrid. And HR seems to be more interested in protecting the company than the actual employees being harassed.
However, quite a few redditors stressed the fact that what the secretary did to her boss—slapping him and screaming at him as she quit—could potentially backfire in the future. Namely, she has potentially left herself open to a lawsuit.
What’s more, she should speak to a lawyer about the sexual harassment she endured and the overtime pay that she missed out on.
Earlier, life coach Lindsay Hanson pointed out to Bored Panda that each of us is individually responsible for setting the boundaries at work that we’re willing to tolerate. If HR turns a blind ear to our criticism about our colleagues, you can still try talking to management directly about the issues that you have.
“If you feel that there’s nothing you can do to change the situation and the company or people involved are unwilling to change, then you have to decide whether you’re willing to stay in that environment or not,” the expert said.
Lindsay stressed that it’s up to us to decide if we should leave or stay and try to change the company from the inside, for the better. “A good question to ask yourself is, even if this toxic situation were to change, would I still want to work here?”
According to her, there’s always a way out of toxic situations, even if we feel pressured financially or otherwise. “There are still companies hiring. There are still ways to make money on your own. There is always a way to change your current situation—telling yourself you’re stuck feels very limiting.”
Here’s how people reacted to the story on r/AskReddit. Some of them had some important advice to share
Parents need to step up and start teaching boys to respect women as their equals. Even in this day I see parents smiling proudly when their 5 year old son tries to force a girl to kiss him. "Oh, how cute.... Boys will be boys." And the guys harassing women should ask themselves the question: "Would I still think this is acceptable if someone did or say the same things to my sister or daughter?"
great idea, maybe in 50-75 years it won't be such a problem :/
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I wonder if she could claim self defense for the slap, though. A man who has made several sexual comments, propositioned her, stolen her wages, was standing behind her while holding her down and saying she should be more compliant. I would think a good lawyer could make the case that she felt threatened enough to need to discourage further predatory behavior.
She could. We actually just learned about a case in school similar to this. The woman was being sexually harassed and the boss would often touch her and grope her sometimes. he had a history of doing this with all of the young women and there were rumors of sexual assault and a clear pattern in his abuse, there was always physical contact from him. not super sexual but grazing their backs, touching their hair, shoulders, once he "accidentally" groped her butt etc. because it was paired w/ the verbal harassment n she slapped him she was able to claim self defense. It wasn't because she feared for her life but she feared she was going to be sexually assaulted. I can't remember what state it was in so obviously this may not apply to Oklahoma. But the woman n the other women in their workplace were able to sue n they did win n she was not charged with assault because they ruled that it was in response to him putting hands on her first. So there is a way for her to still get justice.
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I had a manager once who used to make inappropriate comments to some of the younger female phone advisors. He would also put his hand on their shoulders or arms, for just that little bit too long. I know this because a couple of them would talk to me about it when they bought letters into the post room I worked in. One night there was a works get together in a local bar. He was all over the young girls like a rash. I went over to him and all the while with the biggest smile on my face, whispered to him that if I ever caught him pulling that sh#t again I would, how shall I put it? Persuade him to change his ways. I laughed very loudly and slapped him, rather hard, on the back. I often left post-it notes on his desk with inspirational messages like, Be Good :-). I'm quite a big bloke and it seemed to work because the young ladies said he, for some reason, wasn't as cringy as he had been in the past.
🤯What the actual f**k have i just read? Breast enhancement? How about they make themselves brain enhancement?!
She slapped him, but he laid hands on her first. Holding someone by the shoulder while whispering " I'm going to keep making your life miserable " is defensible.
yep, so that it can receive internet justice IE public shaming and customers abandoning it.
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No, he absolutely established a pattern of abuse and escalated it publicly by touching her which I'm sure, he had done before and she had approached HR about. At that point, it becomes but a point of self defense, not assault. In almost every state there is a law that says when an abused person has good reason to believe that further abuse is about to be inflicted, they can defend themselves physically. She had tried all other means at her immediate disposal. Immediate is the key word. Proud of you. It happened to my daughter at 17. She was on a ladder her 65 year old boss ran his hand up the inside of her leg. She slapped him so hard she broke his glasses,
Women are put here on this earth as fellow HUMAN BEINGS. We don't serve anyone.
He had his hand on her shoulder, in a meeting. I'd say he assaulted her.
If he can't take a slap without filing a lawsuit, he has no balls. Also, he has a Thai wife but whitewashes his employee's name?!?! WTF?!?! Good for her, GTFO in style.
I don't want to imagine how miserable the wifes life is. He most likely thinks of her as his property (as in 'i "bought" you out of poverty, you belong to me now'), and i wouldn't be surprised to found out He doesn't even use her proper name...
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Always go to wages and labor and have the feds handle you not getting paid. We did with one of our employers and they gave him 24 hours to pay us or they were going to liquidate his business. It also opened him to investigation for other employees and about 6 months later all of his restaurants closed over night, employees showing up to an empty building cause the feds cleaned everything out the night before, and the dude himself fled the country to avoid prison. You can also call the feds to help you with sexual harassment. If HR does not correct a situation, don't continue to deal with them, call the feds on them. Get your money and your respect.
Would have been a punch to the nuts if that had happened to me. I hope she really gets him where it hurts, and he gets fired then jailed. What a pig
She only slapped her boss after he put his hands on her. That means she has a defense that it was not assault on her part.
On the opposite side: I had an employee who was obviously just looking for a sexual harassment lawsuit. She dressed like a cheap whore (sorry, but that's really the only way to describe her). I pulled her aside on more than one occasion to remind her that a) this is a place of business and not a singles' bar, and b) remind her that she needed to wear proper undergarments to the office and that her attire should be more professional - her skirt being 6 inches above her knees didn't cut it. She thought I was an absolute b***h, but I really didn't care. I also talked to the CEO and warned him to NEVER be in a room alone with her. She didn't last long as having sex with one of the drivers in his van while on company property was more than enough reason to terminate them both. Good riddance!
INAL, but I recollect that assault occurs when someone touches you when they touch you without permission. At least in the US.
Forget about the sexism for a moment. Just the amount of stupid here is mind boggling.
I wish I slapped of a co-worker when he did that. I was 18 working as a receptionist at an engineering office. The architect (probably mid 40's) always made sexual comments to me when the boss wasn't there. He asked if he could take some pictures of me, "tasteful nudes" and asked for specifics about my love life. He'd come up and massaged my shoulders and it made me sick. The boss was a really good guy and didn't know this was happening when he wasn't in the office. I quit and didn't tell the boss about it. I wish I did tell him.
What is he 80 he is afraid of her. When HR does nothing you call the state workers bureau and sue his sorry self
How do these disgusting individuals have time to do all this nonsense? The energy and time put into doing their actual job might make them successful beyond their wildest imagination. But I guess their imagination is what holds them back all the time. They have a big case of dumb@ss and are just dodging a sexual harassment lawsuit.
I'm sure she's not the only one he's harassed. She would probably be able to get evidence from other secretaries to support her cause. Those kinds of guys don't know when to turn it off. They're the left over "3 martini lunch and play golf with associates" guys.
They were horrible and should be sued for making a hostile work environment, but she was very wrong for slapping him. Women can't slap, push, or hit men. It is battery and it is illegal and a jailable offence, in the US at least.
You know I used to have a woman I worked with, same position so no authority difference, who used to flirt with me a little and I'd flirt back, we were both in relationships and I thought it was just playful banter. But after reading a lot of these stories I wonder how many women out there do this because they feel like it's going to happen and they want to feel some control over the situation. As a side note after having this note I stopped the behavior even with people who would seem to welcome it
Hmmm… could be argued he assaulted her first by holding on to her shoulder. I’d be surprised if she got convicted if she went to trial or a prosecutor would even want to go to trial on this. . She does have some leverage if she wants to go after him for a settlement and there’s always the court of public opinion.
Well done to your niece, having the ability and gumption to stand up for herself instead of meekly slink under the abuse. And this IS abuse. I wish her well in her fight, and already respect her ability to bitc*slap. Well done.
While the behaviour of the men is reprehensible, I'm not too impressed with the description of the unfortunate young lady as 'very plain-jane'! That has insinuations of 'unattractive' and can only be a subjective view.
Uhm, every view is subjective, but plain-Jane just means she doesn't go to work in her party outfit, so to speak. It doesn't mean unattractive at all.
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ok so should she have just let the boss continue or??? she tried all other options to get him to stop and nothing worked
Load More Replies... Parents need to step up and start teaching boys to respect women as their equals. Even in this day I see parents smiling proudly when their 5 year old son tries to force a girl to kiss him. "Oh, how cute.... Boys will be boys." And the guys harassing women should ask themselves the question: "Would I still think this is acceptable if someone did or say the same things to my sister or daughter?"
great idea, maybe in 50-75 years it won't be such a problem :/
Load More Replies... I wonder if she could claim self defense for the slap, though. A man who has made several sexual comments, propositioned her, stolen her wages, was standing behind her while holding her down and saying she should be more compliant. I would think a good lawyer could make the case that she felt threatened enough to need to discourage further predatory behavior.
She could. We actually just learned about a case in school similar to this. The woman was being sexually harassed and the boss would often touch her and grope her sometimes. he had a history of doing this with all of the young women and there were rumors of sexual assault and a clear pattern in his abuse, there was always physical contact from him. not super sexual but grazing their backs, touching their hair, shoulders, once he "accidentally" groped her butt etc. because it was paired w/ the verbal harassment n she slapped him she was able to claim self defense. It wasn't because she feared for her life but she feared she was going to be sexually assaulted. I can't remember what state it was in so obviously this may not apply to Oklahoma. But the woman n the other women in their workplace were able to sue n they did win n she was not charged with assault because they ruled that it was in response to him putting hands on her first. So there is a way for her to still get justice.
Load More Replies... I had a manager once who used to make inappropriate comments to some of the younger female phone advisors. He would also put his hand on their shoulders or arms, for just that little bit too long. I know this because a couple of them would talk to me about it when they bought letters into the post room I worked in. One night there was a works get together in a local bar. He was all over the young girls like a rash. I went over to him and all the while with the biggest smile on my face, whispered to him that if I ever caught him pulling that sh#t again I would, how shall I put it? Persuade him to change his ways. I laughed very loudly and slapped him, rather hard, on the back. I often left post-it notes on his desk with inspirational messages like, Be Good :-). I'm quite a big bloke and it seemed to work because the young ladies said he, for some reason, wasn't as cringy as he had been in the past.
🤯What the actual f**k have i just read? Breast enhancement? How about they make themselves brain enhancement?!
She slapped him, but he laid hands on her first. Holding someone by the shoulder while whispering " I'm going to keep making your life miserable " is defensible.
yep, so that it can receive internet justice IE public shaming and customers abandoning it.
Load More Replies... No, he absolutely established a pattern of abuse and escalated it publicly by touching her which I'm sure, he had done before and she had approached HR about. At that point, it becomes but a point of self defense, not assault. In almost every state there is a law that says when an abused person has good reason to believe that further abuse is about to be inflicted, they can defend themselves physically. She had tried all other means at her immediate disposal. Immediate is the key word. Proud of you. It happened to my daughter at 17. She was on a ladder her 65 year old boss ran his hand up the inside of her leg. She slapped him so hard she broke his glasses,
Women are put here on this earth as fellow HUMAN BEINGS. We don't serve anyone.
He had his hand on her shoulder, in a meeting. I'd say he assaulted her.
If he can't take a slap without filing a lawsuit, he has no balls. Also, he has a Thai wife but whitewashes his employee's name?!?! WTF?!?! Good for her, GTFO in style.
I don't want to imagine how miserable the wifes life is. He most likely thinks of her as his property (as in 'i "bought" you out of poverty, you belong to me now'), and i wouldn't be surprised to found out He doesn't even use her proper name...
Load More Replies... Always go to wages and labor and have the feds handle you not getting paid. We did with one of our employers and they gave him 24 hours to pay us or they were going to liquidate his business. It also opened him to investigation for other employees and about 6 months later all of his restaurants closed over night, employees showing up to an empty building cause the feds cleaned everything out the night before, and the dude himself fled the country to avoid prison. You can also call the feds to help you with sexual harassment. If HR does not correct a situation, don't continue to deal with them, call the feds on them. Get your money and your respect.
Would have been a punch to the nuts if that had happened to me. I hope she really gets him where it hurts, and he gets fired then jailed. What a pig
She only slapped her boss after he put his hands on her. That means she has a defense that it was not assault on her part.
On the opposite side: I had an employee who was obviously just looking for a sexual harassment lawsuit. She dressed like a cheap whore (sorry, but that's really the only way to describe her). I pulled her aside on more than one occasion to remind her that a) this is a place of business and not a singles' bar, and b) remind her that she needed to wear proper undergarments to the office and that her attire should be more professional - her skirt being 6 inches above her knees didn't cut it. She thought I was an absolute b***h, but I really didn't care. I also talked to the CEO and warned him to NEVER be in a room alone with her. She didn't last long as having sex with one of the drivers in his van while on company property was more than enough reason to terminate them both. Good riddance!
INAL, but I recollect that assault occurs when someone touches you when they touch you without permission. At least in the US.
Forget about the sexism for a moment. Just the amount of stupid here is mind boggling.
I wish I slapped of a co-worker when he did that. I was 18 working as a receptionist at an engineering office. The architect (probably mid 40's) always made sexual comments to me when the boss wasn't there. He asked if he could take some pictures of me, "tasteful nudes" and asked for specifics about my love life. He'd come up and massaged my shoulders and it made me sick. The boss was a really good guy and didn't know this was happening when he wasn't in the office. I quit and didn't tell the boss about it. I wish I did tell him.
What is he 80 he is afraid of her. When HR does nothing you call the state workers bureau and sue his sorry self
How do these disgusting individuals have time to do all this nonsense? The energy and time put into doing their actual job might make them successful beyond their wildest imagination. But I guess their imagination is what holds them back all the time. They have a big case of dumb@ss and are just dodging a sexual harassment lawsuit.
I'm sure she's not the only one he's harassed. She would probably be able to get evidence from other secretaries to support her cause. Those kinds of guys don't know when to turn it off. They're the left over "3 martini lunch and play golf with associates" guys.
They were horrible and should be sued for making a hostile work environment, but she was very wrong for slapping him. Women can't slap, push, or hit men. It is battery and it is illegal and a jailable offence, in the US at least.
You know I used to have a woman I worked with, same position so no authority difference, who used to flirt with me a little and I'd flirt back, we were both in relationships and I thought it was just playful banter. But after reading a lot of these stories I wonder how many women out there do this because they feel like it's going to happen and they want to feel some control over the situation. As a side note after having this note I stopped the behavior even with people who would seem to welcome it
Hmmm… could be argued he assaulted her first by holding on to her shoulder. I’d be surprised if she got convicted if she went to trial or a prosecutor would even want to go to trial on this. . She does have some leverage if she wants to go after him for a settlement and there’s always the court of public opinion.
Well done to your niece, having the ability and gumption to stand up for herself instead of meekly slink under the abuse. And this IS abuse. I wish her well in her fight, and already respect her ability to bitc*slap. Well done.
While the behaviour of the men is reprehensible, I'm not too impressed with the description of the unfortunate young lady as 'very plain-jane'! That has insinuations of 'unattractive' and can only be a subjective view.
Uhm, every view is subjective, but plain-Jane just means she doesn't go to work in her party outfit, so to speak. It doesn't mean unattractive at all.
Load More Replies... ok so should she have just let the boss continue or??? she tried all other options to get him to stop and nothing worked
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