Biden and Cursing at Work

As everyone knows by now, when Vice President Biden introduced the President just before Obama signed the historic health care reform legislation, he uttered the f-word as he turned the microphone over to his boss. Biden was pumped that the President had achieved victory and got carried away. Besides, the Vice President often speaks before he thinks. Should his boss care?

As I’ve noted previously (here, here, here), some employers don’t abide cursing. They think cursing has become a workplace epidemic. They have rules against it. They discipline or fire employees for cursing. In such an organization, executives are restrained in their use of foul language.

From an employment law standpoint, cursing can form the basis for a hostile environment, particularly if aimed at members of a protected class. It’s not uncommon in a sexual harassment case for a supervisor to be accused of using the f-word.

People in leadership positions are closely watched. They’re listened to. They serve as models for words we speak and actions we take. I may be wrong about this, but I think leaders who are restrained, reasonable, responsible, rejuvenating, resolute, and respected don’t do a lot of cursing. It doesn’t set the right tone.

The f-word is much overused. If it’s now okay for a leader of the free world to use the word before a microphone in a room full of people, it would seem to be okay for the kid on a playground, the worker on a plant floor, the supervisor in a meeting with subordinate employees, the executive in a speech to community leaders, the sales employee in a conversation with a new customer.

If you think I’m a prude, then . . . . Oops!  It’s easy to say, too easy. It’s become meaninglessly vulgar.