Yeah, now you've got it. If he's not saying things that you find offensive on the job, this is called good etiquette. What he says when you are not paying him is none of your concern. You should only be fired for matters related to your job. Seems obviously to me.
And if I understand your position correctly it's that Joe should be fired if he's a gas station attendant but not if he's a firefighter?
my position is that it doesnt matter what his job is, it only matters if what he did out of work is now spilling into the workplace. so whether he's a firefighter or gas station worker is irrelevant. but if people are calling the firehouse, or gas station, and making the workplace a worse place for all of Joe's coworkers then i see zero issue with an employer letting them go. its the unfortunate world we live in. the people calling the workplace demanding joe be fired are idiots, and i wouldnt even defend their actions in doing that outside of some really drastic circumstances, but i see zero issue with the employer letting joe go. sorry joe, you didnt do it on the job, but its now affecting your job.
these examples also dont cover any number of more nuances. like if a legal prosecutor got caught making a racist tirade off the job they should be let go, because what they did wasnt on the clock but shows a potential negative bias towards some of the people they will need to service on the job. in a way that neither a firefighter or gas station worker is likely to have any issues of bias. its one of the reasons we see a lot of witchhunts aimed at politicians, they're meant to represent their constituents, and if they have biases against some that's bad. and that goes for racist old whiteys in the south and racist young black politicians in big cities. both are bad imo, so if they step out of line and say something dumb i wont defend their right to stay in office. sorry we dont like you we can pressure you to resign or remove you legally.
This post was edited by thesnipa on Jun 12 2026 07:52am