Manager properly fired for off-site sexual activity

A recent case against USA Today by a former General Manager upheld the employer's right to terminate for off-site sexual activity. The case involved a long-term manager who was accused of sexual harassment by a subordinate. Based on the allegations and its investigation, the company terminated the manager because his "style of management of employees and philosophy were inconsistent with [company] goals and policies."

The allegations against the manager were that he performed oral sex on a prostitute at a bachelor party attended by other male employees at a private residence. He also was accused of organizing a visit by company employees to a Phoenix striptease club. Finally, he was accused of referring to a female subordinate in front of coworkers as a "God-damn bitch and a prude" when she complained about the event at the Phoenix club.

The court said, "Given that Cruey was a high-ranking managerial employee in charge of policing Gannett' s sex discrimination and harassment policies, Gannett must of necessity be allowed substantial scope in the exercise of subjective judgment in determining that such conduct was undesirable."

What This Means to You: This is a situation where the company attempted to set a higher standard than the law and succeeded. However, if your organization believes that it is not proper for managers to attend bachelor parties and strip clubs, it would be best if that policy was stated explicitly. Keep in mind that such a policy probably could not be enforced against individual contributors, unless perhaps their jobs were directly related to the administration of the harassment policy.

Cruey v. Gannett Co., ___ Cal.App.4th ___, 98 CDOS 4128 (CA 1, 1998)

Information here is correct at the time it is posted. Case decisions cited here may be reversed. Please do not rely on this information without consulting an attorney first.