# Should people who make racist remarks be fired? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 3, 2015, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-who-make-racist-remarks-be-fired/719150 "2015-05-03T12:34:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![gallows\_fodder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8c91f0/32.png) [@gallows\_fodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gallows_fodder)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2015, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-who-make-racist-remarks-be-fired/719150/41 "2015-05-04T18:20:19Z")
Fired all of them. What’s wrong is wrong, no matter what position you hold in a company. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-who-make-racist-remarks-be-fired/719150/42 "2015-05-05T21:27:25Z")
> [@monstro](#): > > Sorry, but I’m paid to work, not to educate my coworkers. And I don’t necesarily trust my coworkers with this responsibility either. I’m not going to run to management if someone regurgitates Rush Limbaugh nonsense around me. If I see provocative text on a Facebook page that I accidentally stumble upon, I’d probably just keep my mouth shut and my own business. But if a coworker is brazen enough to say “blacks are lazy little so-and-sos” in my presence while we are at work, I’m filing a complaint. And I’m not going to be real happy if management just shrugs their shoulders because FREE SPEECH MAN. There is no such thing as free speech when you are on someone else’s clock. Start your own business if you want unfettered speech all the time. > > I hate when businesses are quick to fire people over stupid stuff too. But workplace harmony can get fucked up real fast when there’s a known racist in the workplace. Ultimately racism isn’t any more precious in a workplace context than sexism, sexual harassment, religious bigotry, homophobia or any of the other myriad things that make for a hostile and unhappy work environment. I’d say use whatever mechanism the company has in place for that kind of thing, which probably doesn’t involve immediate firing. It’s different if the person is speaking with the voice of the company- then it’s not only a hostile workplace issue, but also something that probably will impact sales and the company’s public image and goodwill. In that case, they probably ought to be fired. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2015, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-who-make-racist-remarks-be-fired/719150/43 "2015-05-06T21:54:10Z")
I voted “should be fired” for anybody who had power over other employees. I once had an employee who did her job extremely well, but made some disgustingly bigoted remarks about LGBT folks. I spoke to her about it, and she refused to back down on religious grounds. After much discussion with my next two levels of management, we placed a note on her file which explained the problem and made sure she would never be in a position to manage, train, or otherwise affect the well being of another employee. For purposes of the poll I voted that as “Major disciplinary action.” She felt she was being discriminated against on religious grounds, and chose to leave the company soon after. ---
**Author:** ![Battle\_Pope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@Battle\_Pope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Battle_Pope)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2015, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-who-make-racist-remarks-be-fired/719150/44 "2015-05-06T22:46:00Z")
First offence - Not fired but major disciplinary action . Happens again - out the door. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2015, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-who-make-racist-remarks-be-fired/719150/45 "2015-05-07T13:35:02Z")
If it’s a one-time thing, especially if it is not obviously intentional and not targeted at a person of that race (sex, religion, sexual orientation, what have you), they probably shouldn’t be fired. Someone should talk to them about it, though. If it’s a pattern, or if it is clearly being done to harass or intimidate a specific person, then it should be a firing offense. If you’re saying something racist when you’re a spokesperson for a company, you should be fired for being incompetent at your job. Not making the company look bad is kind of the whole job of a spokesperson. I would argue that it’s a major component of being a CEO or other high-level executive, too. There are lots of things that are not appropriate to discuss in a work environment. Adults should know this, and should have some inkling of what those things are. Your opinion of people of a particular race, sex, religion, sexual orientation, or whatever is something that isn’t appropriate to discuss in a work environment. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-who-make-racist-remarks-be-fired/719150.md?page=2)