90 lines
3.5 KiB
Markdown
90 lines
3.5 KiB
Markdown
---
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title: "Saying “Put Some Clothes On” to a Woman at Work"
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source: "https://medium.com/the-human-side-of-work/put-some-clothes-on-1672347d11a6"
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author:
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- "[[Victoria Corindi 🌻]]"
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published: 2024-04-29
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created: 2024-10-29
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description: "It seemed like every time we sat down to our weekly status meeting in the glass-walled conference room, she said something about how freezing she was. At least once a week her wardrobe consisted of a…"
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tags:
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- "clippings"
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---
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## Is what my co-worker said harassment or hilarious?
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[
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](https://medium.com/@victoriacorindi?source=post_page---byline--1672347d11a6--------------------------------)
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[
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](https://medium.com/the-human-side-of-work?source=post_page---byline--1672347d11a6--------------------------------)
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Photo by [Dane Deaner](https://unsplash.com/@danedeaner?utm_source=medium&utm_medium=referral) on [Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/?utm_source=medium&utm_medium=referral)
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Rosalee had been complaining about the temperature in the office for months.
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It seemed like every time we sat down to our weekly status meeting in the glass-walled conference room, she said something about how freezing she was.
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There’s no question that our office was chilly.
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Even in the heat of summer, I wore long sleeves to keep myself warm.
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I also have a sweater that I keep in my office and I frequently put it on.
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Rosalee wore sleeveless tops and skirts.
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I’ve never seen her wear long sleeves, pants, or a jacket, even in the winter.
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At least once a week her wardrobe consisted of a summer dress made of silk or rayon with barely any fabric at all.
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What she wore wasn’t revealing, there just wasn’t much of it.
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Her laundry loads must be light, I thought.
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As one who never makes comments on women’s clothes in the workplace or otherwise, I bit my tongue when she voiced her desire to increase the temperature on the office’s thermostat.
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It seemed silly to keep complaining when the fix was as simple as putting on a sweater and everyone else was fine.
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Richard had joined our team as a project manager about a month prior.
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I’d noticed his face when Rosalee complained.
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He wasn’t annoyed or dismissive, he was amused.
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As he started the meeting that Monday, Rosalee took her seat in a wisp of a dress.
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She wrapped her arms around her body and visibly shivered.
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Locking eyes with Richard when he welcomed the team, Rosalee said, “I’m freezing. When is someone going to do something about this?”
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==“It would help if you put some clothes on,” he replied.==
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Silence.
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You could hear a pin drop in the room.
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We all shifted in our seats. I was sure I heard someone chuckle under their breath. The colleague next to me coughed.
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Waiting to see how Rosalee would respond, we were on pins and needles.
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When she didn’t reply, but instead kept her eyes on the table, Richard continued the meeting.
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After that day, Rosalee made no change to her wardrobe, but she did stop complaining.
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She never brought up being cold or the temperature in the office again.
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What I wonder is if Richard should have said what he did.
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Were his comments rude, inappropriate, and shaming?
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Or hilarious.
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Read about my responsibility in my Gen Z daughter’s entitlement:
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Or what’s stopping me from suing my employer: |