I’m a bit annoyed. We have one customer service rep (a woman) who brings all her women’s magazines into to work and leaves them in the break room for anyone to read.
What baffles me - some of these covers could easily be the cover of a lad’s mag, if the title and text on the front was changed a bit.
The most recent - this was left on our break room table today: Glamour April 2012
I mean, I’m not offended by the cover. Hell, it’s a sexy woman. W00t. But if a guy brought in a FHM or a Maxim or something he’d have an official meeting and warning through HR. And yes, this has happened.
I like this CSR, so I’m not going to go crying to HR about something that really doesn’t offend me that much (my main offense is that if we had a customer in the place, a “sexy” mag cover makes us look a bit…less classy.)
But why this double standard? Seriously, replace that mag title with FHM and have a man bring it in, that’s near a firing offense.
If that bothers you, then I hope you never see the old Redbook magazines my great grandfather had. They had ads that had full frontal. And, no, they weren’t advertising anything scandalous–it was just some skin cream or soap or something.
And the double standard is because they assume the women aren’t reading it for licentious purposes. In fact, I’m pretty sure that’s why they could get by with that ad back then–it was just assumed that men wouldn’t read the magazines.
Not that I think that’s a smart distinction, as men can just as easily read what this woman brings in. But I’m almost 100% certain that’s the thought process behind it.
A magazine like FHM or Maxim would lead to disciplinary action? Gee, I hope the pay is good there in Saudi Arabia.
Seriously, what? What employer would have a problem with someone reading FHM while on a break? If it was porn, of course that’s inappropriate, but general-interest men’s magazines? It’s hardly top-shelf stuff.
Maybe it’s a UK/US thing. The Sun newspaper, which has topless shots on page 3 every day, is a staple of work canteens and tea rooms here.
Because women who read Cosmo or Glamour are generally not into looking at pics of naked chicks. There’s sex appeal on the cover you posted, but it’s not intended for sexual consumption. It’s really a false analogy to compare chicks who read Glamour with guys who read Maxim. It’d be more fair to compare chicks who read Glamour with guys who read GQ. I mean, GQ has some racy pics, but it’s about style and advertising, not fucking the models. It’s more, “I want to look like that person!” vs. “I want to have hot raunchy sex with that person!”
This is why bringing this up with HR will get you painted as a troublemaker (well, and the fact that HR people are usually female, *and *because more sexual harassment lawsuits are filed against men by women than vice-versa). I wouldn’t go there, if I were you.
This is one of the Things I’ll Never Understand About America. If it was, say, a video game magazine (do they still exist?) with a picture of a blood-spattered soldier clutching a machine gun and enough ammo to wipe out a small town, I bet nobody would bat an eyelid. But a photo of a smiling, pretty woman sitting in the sun revealing nothing more titillating than a bit of side-boobage is somehow inappropriate?
I know which I’d rather look at, and I know which I’d rather have my kids looking at.
Ah, but the point of the OP was that the picture of a “smiling, pretty woman sitting in the sun revealing nothing more titillating than a bit of side-boobage” was not considered inappropriate. Not at Gamehat’s workplace, anyway. Because it’s on the cover of Glamour, and a lady brought it in, and all that.
True, but the pics on the front of Maxim or FHM are rarely much more revealing than that. In fact, from a quick Google Images search of covers of the American versions of these magazines, they seem to be less revealing than the British versions (usually the models seem to be wearing a full bikini or lingerie, rather than strategically placed hands/arms).
My point stands that I can’t imagine any workplace over here having a problem with such magazines being in the break room, unless it was, I don’t know, a women’s refuge, or something to do with a religion that has restrictions on depictions of the female form perhaps. They’re the kind of publications you’d see in a dentist’s waiting room, so why not in a staff tea room?
Bringing in a copy of FHM being a “near firing offense”? I’d be very interested to know if that’s a widespread attitude or if GameHat just works fpr a particularly puritanical company.
FHM would not be a fire-able offense anywhere I’ve worked, but I’m pretty sure it would be career-limiting move. No one cares what you watch or read in private, but being open with such a magazine shows a lack of understanding that someone around you might be offended.
I’m thinking, “so what?” As a guy, I’m going to find that Glamour cover arousing. Will my hard-on care what word is over the pic in big type?
The reason the ‘not intended for sexual consumption’ intent is effective is that such magazines are largely bought by heterosexual women who read them at home or in the beauty parlor. They’re usually not in a break room at work populated by both women and men.
Why? Why not just figure out what would happen if a man brought in a copy of… Glamour? Nothing. What happens when a guy brings in a Playboy (just to read the articles, of course)? Hopefully the exact same thing as if a woman brought in that exact same copy of Playboy. Sexual intention or not, there is an actual difference between Glamour, FHM, Maxim and Playboy, regardless of who’s mailbox it’s delivered to.
In boring corporate America, yes, you will get spoken to if you leave that stuff in company public areas. Probably not a firing offense, but HR will tell you to knock it off.
Look, I’m no prude. I personally have no problems with the cover in question. Hell, I’ve watched enough porn in my life.
But that’s not the issue.
The issue is: A co-worker or a customer or a client might be offended, or at least consider it a bit low-class. And we have customers and clients coming through our office nearly every day. That’s the issue. I’m finding it a bit weird that a women’s magazine with a sexy cover is ok, but a men’s magazine with a sexy cover gets HR attention. Personally, I’d just say - keep both of them out of the workplace. It’s just easier that way, and no customers/clients/co-workers will get all offended.
It’s really kind of the same thing as politics or religion in the workplace.
With colleagues with whom I am also friends, I will happily argue politics and religion at work. But with colleagues/customers/clients with whom I have only a professional relationship - discussing politics, religion, or in my OP’s case, sex, is verboten. You just don’t do it.
Having “sexy” magazines left out in the office can offend all sorts of clients/customers/etc. It’s best just not to do it, here in America at least. My beef is that women are doing it and are not being told to stop. But now I’m thinking I will make a casual comment to our HR rep that “yeah, this should probably stop.”
Unless you work in a daycare center or sex addiction clinic, or your firm produces chastity belts or calices, or the majority of your clients look like this, it sounds like you’re giving a shit where there are no takers. If it makes you happy to tattle to HR about naughty pictures of ladies with their boobies (barely) showing, and you don’t mind contributing in your small way to the kiddie-proofing of society for the benefit of theoretical prudes, then knock thy holy self out.
I don’t think this has anything to do with being a uptight prude, it seems to me more like the OP is complaining of hypocrisy in how HR treats the issue. Much like if a coffee drinker was scolded for being a drug addict dosing on company time, while there is a nice specially furnished area for smokers to light up outside.
Per the OP’s account, nobody’s been sanctioned for bringing in Maxim, nor has any client complained about seeing Glamour. The “hypocrisy of HR” and the “offense of all sorts of clients” so far exist only in theory. If you aren’t personally offended, why not mind your own business?
WHy do some guys bring their laddie mags to work? For reading material in the bathroom…:dubious:
Maxim and HLM are much more out there on the front page with their delicious little tidbits promised inside… Cosmo as well, TMI for me personally, consider time and place so keep it in your gym bag or personal space.
