By Ray Rivers
May 21, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
FHRITP – This crude sexist expression has become some kind of rallying cry for the intellectually immature. And we’re not just talking about 14 year-old virgin boys frolicking in the locker room, bragging about things they can only dream about. This latest wave of stupidity appears to have been started, only last year, by an off-sound microphone, which wasn’t. And now social media is perpetuating this garbage, featuring some grey-bearded dude in a hoody, screaming this trash into female reporters’ microphones.
Last week a City News reporter, Shauna Hunt, became the latest victim while covering an FC soccer game in Toronto. As the fans were filing out she got heckled by a mob of youngish males. Deciding to fight back, she naively challenging the mindless mob to defend the use of their profanity.
One of the louts, Shawn Simoes, sporting an Emirates shirt, took up the reporter’s challenge. His face was later recognized by his employer, Hydro One, and he was promptly given his walking papers. Of course, the firing gave this cycle of idiocy even more life, like gasoline on a fire, as Liberal and NDP leaders lowered themselves by chiming-in with their support for the firing.
We are reminded of the case of Jian Ghomeshi, released from the CBC for what initially appeared to be a transgression committed outside of his workplace. Later it was uncovered that the talk show radio-star’s violence against women had been a pattern, and criminal charges ensued. The voice and face of CBC radio, Mr. Ghomeshi’s conduct reflected negatively on his employer, the public broadcaster, and apparently violated the terms in his employment contract.
But that was hardly the case with the fired Hydro One engineer in this FHRITP escapade, though the company claimed that he violated the company’s code of conduct. But the only way anyone knew he even worked for the utility was when he had been publicly fired. It was just another imbecilic act of someone off premises, on his own free time, probably well-lubricated with alcohol and pre-charged with testosterone as a result of watching his favourite blood sport.
Sticks and stones can break your bones… but there was no physical violence, no criminal charges, just dumb and dumber language. How far do we allow an employer to control the personal conduct and life of an employee, one might well ask? And how will this engineer get another job with a resume including being fired for such an asinine act? Are we all better off with him facing a future of perpetual unemployment – or worse?
Maple Leaf Sports Events (MLSE) claims it will refuse future admittance to the numbskulls in this incident, once it figures out who they are. But perhaps they really need to also look at the kind of events they are hosting, and the impact of blood sports on the game and post-game behaviour of the spectators. Does watching male-dominated aggressive sporting events stimulate young males to socially mis-behave? My favourite spectator ice game is fight-free women’s hockey.
To be fair to the boys, it is not infrequent that one hears women criticize and insult men, even in sexual terms. It is a social sport to laugh at the other gender, providing it is done in good spirit. But FHRITP is different because it is mean and derogatory – intended to demean, as well as bait, women.
Hydro One may escape a wrongful dismissal law suit (and we the higher electricity rates that might entail). But even so, firing someone for something which is so remote from their workplace responsibilities is a problematic precedent. It implies that employers can dictate aspects in the personal lives of their employers, at least if they become public and/or go on social media.
In the ever-closer Orwellian world to which we are gravitating, one wonders if it wouldn’t have been better – rather than canning him – to have Mr. Simoes sent for counselling – a visit to Hydro One’s ‘thought police’. But who is Hydro One to be setting moral standards for its employees anyway, given the recent review of the corporation by the Auditor General. Still, people in glass houses do throw stones – though at least this sends a powerful signal to the thoughtless and insensitive.
FHRITP. It’s crude, but it is nothing more than a description of the sex act. So it’s not like these dough-brained idiots have just figured out how to split the atom – and thus have earned a right to feel proud of themselves. Perhaps the best thing we could all do is to just ignore them and wait for this banality to go away.
Background links:
FHRITP Firing An Employment Trend
Toronto FC Soccer Hydro One Firing Reporter Confrontation
Female Reporter Challenges Man Apologizes Deserve Firing Calgary Man Fined
Banned From Sports Events Hydro One
Ray Rivers writes weekly on both federal and provincial politics, applying his more than 25 years as a federal bureaucrat to his thinking. Rivers was a candidate for provincial office in Burlington where he ran as a Liberal against Cam Jackson in 1995, the year Mike Harris and the Common Sense Revolution swept the province.
Bob you state that thugs are only brazed by a lack of response to their bullying and cruelly use it as an excuse to escalate the abuse. I was always taught that the best thing was to ignore a bully because if they get no response they get bored and go away. I was bullied when I was young and have developed a thick skin and an attitude of not worrying what others think because of it.
As to this man being fired I do not agree with it. Yes he was an idiot but he was on his own time at an event that had nothing to do with his job. With a few obvious exceptions an employer should not have the right to regulate a persons behaviour outside of work. So too with checking a prospective employees personal social media. It is a total violation of privacy.
What is wrong with being an idiot? The guy works at hydro, he was probably decompressing with alcohol and said something really really really stupid. So what. She could have kicked him in the balls and taught him a lesson he would thank her for later, and people would have loved it. He is actually lucky he got fired; who the hell would want to work at hydro ripping off the people of this province, way more offensive than some stupid remarks. Women should stand up to these morons and punch them in the face, and move on. What a dumb story.
I have no problem if an employee is fired for problems associated with their work, abusing sick time, theft etc.
However there must be a limit on the power of the employer to dismiss people for off the job stupidity. This immature young man has not been charged with any criminal offence, he did not physically attack anyone, steal anything, although he did act like an idiot. If that is reason to be terminated there are a lot more firings to come from every sector of the economy.
There is a trend in Canadian society that has governments and employers assuming powers that reduce your personal rights and freedoms. The biggest, and most dangerous, attack on your freedoms is Bill C51. This, coupled with the fact employers feel free to dismiss you for actions that have no affect on your job,are giant steps in the erosion of your personal freedoms and rights.
I certainly do not condone the actions of this young man, but those actions do not warrant the destruction of his life for a single act of stupidity. I hope for the sake of all of us his union/lawyer is able to have this vindictive and over reactive punishment rescinded.
Abuse should never be allowed to be ignored. Not everybody is always strong or safe-enough to deflect the threat. That reporter was subjected to bullying. I would suggest that thugs are only brazened by the lack of a response to their bullying and cruelly use that as an excuse to escalate the abuse?
The job dismissal of louts for this behavior is entirely appropriate. The lack of action by their employer would be seen as tacit acceptance of the abuse. Should a similar incident occur again, only this time in the workplace, an aggrieved party could make a justifiable claim that the employer was negligent in preventing the repeated occurrence.
As for the punishment fitting the crime, neither do we want, nor can we afford to have a cop on every street corner. For too many unfortunately, it is only when they hear the squeals of pain from the guilty being ground by the wheels of justice that the lesson can be learned.
Well said Mr. Rivers.
It gets worse: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3078229/Worker-fired-disabling-GPS-app-tracked-24-hours-day.html
I remember attending a committee meeting at Toronto City Hall where a female councillor made a sarcastic crack to the males in the room about “boys with their toys”. This was not a sexual remark, but it was sexist. It drew some laughs. I remember thinking at the time how outraged this woman would have been if some male had made a demeaning remark about women.