Breasts

[True Romance]

So we have a case study at work around the word "Breasts" and if it can be classed as sexual harassment.

The example is that a lady is removing a large box from a heigh shelf when it slips and hits her in the top half of her body causing discomfort. A male Manager asks if she may have bruised her breasts.

In this example could the managers comments be classed as sexual harassment? One for our female members and if the males would be so kind to ask their lady partners it would be much appreciated.

Thank you.

 

[DXX]

Me Too…….oh to be a victim. Pretty soon we won’t even be able to acknowledge that the genders have different anatomy.

 

[VanDamMan]

PC….Too much !

 

[Pete C]

As a manager, I have dealt with a number of grievance cases, and awkward individuals, although never dealt with a sexual harassment claim. I am also a husband, and a father of a grown daughter. I also work with largely female teams now.

If it was one of my staff that made the comment, then I would be wondering why they referenced that part of the body. Why not just say “did you bruise yourself” ?

In some mixed teams a level of banter exists, and the comment might be acceptable. In others, it would be completely unacceptable. Context is everything in these cases.

I think it could be construed as sexist.

Pete

 

[Bobby Turkalino]

I am so pleased to have left management several years ago.

 

[JOG]

The Manager is sailing very close to the wind - unless he can demonstrate relevant medical experience that he has been approved to use in the workplace! He definitely needs words of guidance! He has to explain why he asked about specific areas of the body.

“Are you hurt? Are you bruised? Where?” are the questions to ask and the responses noted in the accident book/report. Open questions all the way.

Even the simple question “Have you hurt yourself?” could be perceived as biased as there is an inference that the company is assuming the employee caused their own injury!

It is a minefield!

 

[JOG]

Ooos, sorry! I didn’t notice that you are seeking the female perspective! I will double check with SWMBO when she gets back…..formerly a senior manager in a large corp. (I used to call her “Dr Death” before we started dating….I thought she was HR!)

My guess is she will say he has a case to answer, but let’s see!

 

[Ali-G]

I can’t see how the word “breast” could be seen as sexist.
It’s a name for a part of the body the same as leg or foot, men have them too.
All this woke business is getting right on my tits now.

 

[Bobby Turkalino]

Wokeness has so far not infested the removal industry, am sure it's a matter of time.

With luck I will be retired by then

 

[DXX]

My lady works offshore in the oil & gas industry on a ship with 50+ blokes and on average 3-4 women, on average 17 different nationalities with probably every religious faith bar one (will never get a visa in Islamic countries). Being from an ex-USSR country she doesn’t have a PC bone in her body as PC doesn’t exist in large swathes of the world, however she still treats others respectfully without the BS that the western world finds obligatory.
All employees are treated as equals with with strict company policy on sex discrimination, harassment, etc.
I used to be a field manager within the same company, as @JOG says it’s a minefield.
While everybody wants to be equal it soon becomes apparent who is out to screw the company and fellow employees over. There’s a Medic who deals with injuries and illness, I’ve seen employees working through the medical dictionary A-Z knowing that they can’t be touched and taking the day rate for sitting on their arse watching TV while there fellow crew mates pick up their workload.
It also becomes apparent who doesn’t want to work with women, some people of certain faiths do not take instruction from women, full stop.
So in this situation you still have to bite your lip, I’ve got so much scar tissue on my tongue that I got out of the industry as it was getting harder to get the actual job done.

The manager in this case IMO should have said ‘if you feel you have been injured please follow the company procedure and get medical advice if needed’
The manager should also have checked that Manual Handling training procedure was valid and followed. If not an accident investigation is required.

 

[T6ARF]

I totally agree with @Ali-G above, it’s not about the word of a body part, as both male and female share the same names for pretty much all body parts…. it’s about the person using the word or words. The manager in this case needs to ask open questions as @JOG says…. “are you ok - what happened?” Put the open question to the female and let her describe if she’s hurt herself or not?

I’m just glad I’m self employed and only have myself to think about…. if I bruise my breasts or my b#locks that’s my problem!

 

[Nige_g]

I can’t see how the word “breast” could be seen as sexist.
It’s a name for a part of the body the same as leg or foot, men have them too.
All this woke business is getting right on my tits now.

I agree,it’s getting on mine too, however, in the example by the OP, ask yourself, if it was a bloke who had the accident, would you say “Have you bruised your chest”? Probably not. More likely to be ”Are you hurt”? If it was an arm, unlikely to ask if they’ve hurt their arm, just, “are you hurt/injured“? , or whatever And let the injured party tell you the injury.

 

[DXX]

In the offshore industry the installations are rigged with CCTV recording, radio recording and some employees are wearing body cameras for certain procedures.
It’s a significant expense to cover a large ship / platform but is obviously financially beneficial when it comes to litigation / compensation.
Obviously nobody wants to work under these conditions but I suspect it’s going to spread where the local law allows it.

 

[JOG]

SWMBO says he has a case to answer - why did he query her breasts specifically! For it to be “sexual harassment”, there is a need to consider context etc. However, the injured party has sufficient grounds to lodge a complaint that would require investigation! Bad load handling, injured party, distressing situation, and then some plonker asks about her breasts…take a claim form!!!

SWMBO is also of the era where a “FFS” under her breath (see what I did there?!!) was uttered! She despairs for the Uber-Woke world that is is coming!

 

[JOG]

In the offshore industry the installations are rigged with CCTV recording, radio recording and some employees are wearing body cameras for certain procedures.
It’s a significant expense to cover a large ship / platform but is obviously financially beneficial when it comes to litigation / compensation.
Obviously nobody wants to work under these conditions but I suspect it’s going to spread where the local law allows it.

Remember when we’d object to surveillance for invading our rights?!! Now we have dash cams and bodyworn cameras to protect our rights?!!

I have my private list of people I avoid meeting without another person present! Sad, I know, but some people are poisonous.

 

[Trouts]

Remember when we’d object to surveillance for invading our rights?!! Now we have dash cams and bodyworn cameras to protect our rights?!!

and, on a slightly lesser note, willingly carry mobile phones...

 

[Dansporter]

Another example of a world gone mad. I had high hopes when I saw the thread title, what a let down!

 

[JOG]

Another example of a world gone mad. I had high hopes when I saw the thread title, what a let down!

I had to chew down the temptation too!

 

[DaveD]

So we have a case study at work around the word "Breasts" and if it can be classed as sexual harassment.

The example is that a lady is removing a large box from a heigh shelf when it slips and hits her in the top half of her body causing discomfort. A male Manager asks if she may have bruised her breasts.

In this example could the managers comments be classed as sexual harassment? One for our female members and if the males would be so kind to ask their lady partners it would be much appreciated.

Thank you.

I'm not qualified to give the "right" answer to the question, if there is one, but any man who refers to "breasts" in a conversation with, or in the presence of, a female colleague, is either a doctor or somebody who wants to be unemployed.

As an aside, is this the most viewed thread on this forum, ever?

 

[Nige_g]

Remember when we’d object to surveillance for invading our rights?!! Now we have dash cams and bodyworn cameras to protect our rights?!!

I have my private list of people I avoid meeting without another person present! Sad, I know, but some people are poisonous.

A son of a friend, In his early 20’s films consent on his phone prior to any sexual encounters.