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How Would You Have Handled This?

Blog Last Activity 11 years ago 872 views 30 comments
A few weeks ago my coworker, Barbara, caught this young guy Michael in our department looking at porn on his computer. She is an older woman, basically a lonely, petty bitch who lives alone. Michael is a very intelligent, nerdy but cute and nice young man who's wife was one month away from having their first child. Everyone liked the guy. But my coworker freaked out. She was appalled at what she saw on his screen. So I was working from home the day she caught him and she calls me all upset and doesn't know what to do. She didn't confront him and Michael had no idea she saw what he was doing. I told he just to give it 24 hours before she did anything. but she didn't. She reported Michael to his boss and he was fired that day. Now, he has a baby coming and no job.

No one was supposed to know that it was Barb who turned him in but it was leaked and now everyone knows it was her that did it. I never told a soul. I kept my mouth shut.

I have no idea how he got around our firewall to even find the porn, but somehow he did. And I think he was just a horny, frustrated boy who was not getting any sex due to his wife's condition.

Anyway, having said all of that, I would not have turned him in. I would have said, dude what the fuck are you doing and warned him that he could lose his job for that. But that is all I would have done. Now his life is a total wreck and I feel awful for him. It was a poor lapse in judgement on his part but he didn't deserve to get fired.

What would you have done?

Comments

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11 years ago

I dont understand?

11 years ago

professorbutt...or should we call you mr penisman? jed...hillboy payaly tommygun??????you are one in the same

11 years ago

As a proctologist I look at ass photos all day long is that classified as porn?

steesbratt
steesbratt
11 years ago

Its like speeding if you do it you have to be prepaired to get a ticket. Dont do the crime if you dont want to do the time. If the company had not fired him they would have been liable for a law suit. So while you have to feel sorry for a young guy with a family on the way, you cant fix stupid.

nate88
nate88
11 years ago

Agree with almost everyone and can see all positions clearly. I see a couple of things not covered. By Barb reporting this to supervision - it falls under "Quid Pro Quo" (Damn I finally got to use something from college). This places to 'company' in a BAD situation and they HAD to act. Second, It's sad to see him sacked but, he was on company time and getting paid so technically, unless on job porn was part of his job description -he was STEALING. Lastly - Work Ethic. Do what you're paid for, there are no 'me' rules at work - it's THEIR rules. I'll add a wise comment that a commander told me a bit back and hope it might help someone else, "You don't get your meat where you getyour bread". Wish the guy luck - he'll need all he can get if it sits on his record.-Andy

11 years ago

North Carolina is a right to work state too, but most places like managers to have a good reason for firing someone, even if, hypothetically you can just walk them out the door.

In answer to Tommy's question - the IT director would be responsible for any loss of data or damage caused by viruses or malware. There are supposed to be sufficient safeguards in place because we know that not everyone behaves well. I can say this because I was head of IT for a global company. These attacks are very common - our CFO clicked on an email that he thought was from the IRS and started streaming his entire hard drive to some location in China. So its the IT guys problem is there's damage as a resullt of someone's internet surfing.

11 years ago

why would you need an excuse to fire someone? I guess it depends on your state, here in Missouri its a work at will state you can come to work in the morning and the boss can say I dont like you and fire you. Or give no reason at all. Thats life, thats why you work hard and make yourself the best at your job, not the best porn watcher. Neither of you addressed the issue Tommy brought up? How about an answer there?

jagain569
jagain569
11 years ago

he should not have ever been looking at porn at work. but he should be yelled at for doing it but not fired unless hes a bad worker

11 years ago

I've been (and am) a manager in a lot of different places. My personal style would have been to take him aside and told him to knock it off before IT reported him to HR. Most of the time companies only get rid of someone for looking at porn if they really want to fire them and need an excuse. That said there are a lot of managers who would just look at this as a breach of professional conduct and terminate the person. And it seems like women are more prone to this than guys (cause we all look at porn?)

11 years ago

My question is,,,, who is liable if his horny escapades did indeed allow an intrusioin into the companies database and now the customerbase and all the personal data has been stolen. It could pose a great threat to hundreds of innocent people, their credit and more. Is the company liable or is the horny (and if I agree with some of you the lets give the guy a break) employee on the hook for the damage? Cutkiwi, Michael was caught surfing porn on company time. This would be no different than making a statement at someone publicly "I'm gonna kill you" then 3 weeks later that person turns up murdered who do you think the police will arrest? He was caught bypassing the firewalls, now if in a few weeks the system is violated just who do you think they will hang everything on? HE WAS STUPID INCREDIBLY STUPID AMAZINGLY INCREDIBLY INTENSELY OVERWHEMINGLY STUPID. DONT SURF PORN AT WORK! If I had an account there and their data was stolen and I suffered ID Theft I would sue them and HIM. Period

11 years ago

Tommygunn has a valid point also people, how many times do we hear on the news that a company has had their computers hacked or violated and their customers data has been stolen. All their customers personal data is now available for ID theft. Its a very risky think this guy did just to get a boner

11 years ago

Swfitjohn has a good point - it is little brother who is taking over. All the ugly women with no tits who hate everyone and everything, all the religius loons who hate others rooting and drinking, all the anal retentive dickheads who hate anyone smoking or eating hamburges or doing anything which they might enjoy doing.
Relly sad. Kinda revenge of the nerds against the cool kids

11 years ago

In Germany you get a warning for that ... but other countries other laws. He is not payed to watch porn so...

11 years ago

If I was the employer and paying him to work and he was wasting time looking at porn I would have fired him on the spot. There are plenty of out of work people out there who would have given me more effort for my money than someone wasting my assetts and my company time. He obviously was on the clock since he was on the computer. He also was risking my company sinck he obviously had bypassed the company firewall and got into porn, who knows what spyware he might have been exposed to and what company and client records he might have compromised. He's lucky he JUST got fired and didnt get prosicuted

swiftjohn
swiftjohn
11 years ago

For those who think he should have been given a warning you need to recognize how the world really is. We now live in the world of ZERO TOLERANCE! for anything. We are slowly and surely evolving into an Orwellian nightmare of a society but it isn't Big Brother that's taking over, it's Little Brother. The company fired him for two reasons. The first is to make an example of him to everyone else should they be tempted to stretch or break the rules - any rules. And second, to remind people that they are merely drones and can be easily replaced at the whim of their corporate masters and if they wind up living under a bridge, so what. If this is the kind of world you like then vote for Romney, the master of the corporate masters.

Davey1965
Davey1965
11 years ago

Who hasnt looked at porn at work. Not a thing to be dimissed by ,in my book.
Sure he broke the rules, but he should have ,got a final warning.

11 years ago

Arick I agree completely, I would be exactly the same and I would feel awful for the guy that lost his job. I would have not said a thing to anyone in charge and just told the guy to stop what he was doing. I hope things work out for him, there is work out there, its hard to find but if you have the skills and are willing to work there are still jobs you just have be diligent, I hope he finds work with out much trouble. I found a bad job followed by a good one so I came out OK and frankly, a little smarter.

11 years ago

i cannot go to a porn site on my computer at work... most employers have that in their employment hand book and state you will be fired

11 years ago

bummer, took the risk got caught. You play gotta pay

11 years ago

Guys I hate to say it but when you are on the company computer on company time and you break company policy by looking at porn, you get what you deserve. He knew the consequences when he did it, as you say he had to get around the firewall which I assume wasnt easy. It took time so I suspect this wasnt a first time thing. I'm sorry for what happened but he cannot cry poor me he did it to himself, at least he can COBRA his benefits and still have health coverage for the baby to be born. Just be thankfulThat employment law now states on a refrence, a former employer may only state date of hire, date of leaving and if you are elligible for rehire. NOTHING ELSE. So a future employer will never know he was terminated for looking at porn. If they tell a perspective employer then he can sue them.

swiftjohn
swiftjohn
11 years ago

I would have handled it the same as you. But he has nobody to blame but himself. People need to remember that company computers are company property and you have no right to privacy when using them. All activity you do on a company computer, whether it be E-mail or internet usage, is stored in memory and is subject to recall at the company's discretion because you activity is company property. Companies routinely conduct audits of computer usage by their employees looking for inappropriate usage and if that co-worker didn't rat him out, chances are an audit would have exposed him and the net result would be the same. Never, never, never use a company computer for anything except company business. Don't send resumes to potential employers, don't look at porn, don't play computer games, don't send jokes or anything political or religious. You're in your workplace, not your masterbatorium at home so act appropriately. And for those of you who have little experience in the work place remember one very important thing. The workplace is a predatory environment. There will always be people who are trying to get advancement by gaining favor and approval from the bosses. And for them, the easiest way is over the bodies of their co-workers. Don't think your co-workers as your friends. Many will smile to your face as they slide a knife in your ribs. It may not be pretty but that's just how it is - everywhere...everyplace. So follow my advice and warning, play defense, and you should get by just fine.