How does employing a rapist not constitute an unsafe work environment for female employees?

Submitted ⁨⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago⁩ by ⁨Fosheze@lemmy.world⁩ to ⁨[deleted]⁩

So I just discovered that I have been working next to the waste of oxygen that raped my best friend several years ago. I work in a manufacturing environment and I know that you can’t fire someone just for being a sex offender unless it directly interferes with work duties (in the US). But despite it being a primarily male workforce he does work with several women who have no idea what he is. He literally followed a woman home, broke into her house, and raped her. Him working here puts every female employee at risk. How is that not an unsafe working environment? How is it at even legal to employ him anywhere where he will have contact with women?

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Aurolei@lemmy.world ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
I love the maturity in the responses to the question here. I was honestly expecting more people to agree with the OP, but it’s been a delight to read such colourful articulations on the reasons why they are wrong. I don’t even need to weigh in here as it’s been said perfectly by so many people here.

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- Kolanaki@yiffit.net ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  Agreeing with OP is the same as saying you don’t believe people can change or get better.
  
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  - jaek@lemmy.world ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
    No, it isn’t. You can fully believe in people’s ability to rehabilitate and change, while also being aware that not everyone rehabilitates and changes.
    
    The needs of the perpetrator of a crime need to be balanced against the needs of society at large. This is why you get your license taken away from you when you drink and drive, or why you end up on a sex offenders register.
    
    In this case, there’s a valid argument to be made that this person represents a danger to society, and the need to protect/inform people from him outweighs his needs.
    
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fuckwit_mcbumcrumble@lemmy.world ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
What someone did in the past doesn’t mean they’re going to do it again. You may be paranoid about it, but imagine how they feel if they’re a legitimately changed person? That said I’d still be cautious.

I agree with @captainlezbian Was he convicted, or found innocent? Unless he’s doing weird shit that doesn’t justify continued discrimination.

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- Catoblepas@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  Important note: in the US people are not found “innocent,” they are found “not guilty.” It may seem pedantic but it’s important to remember that a lack of a conviction is not evidence that they didn’t commit a crime, only that a jury believed there was enough doubt in the evidence to decline to find them guilty.
  
  This is especially important to remember in rape cases, where evidence is difficult for outsiders to determine and a trial result of “not guilty” doesn’t necessarily mean a rape didn’t happen or that the defendant didn’t commit it.
  
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  - snooggums@kbin.social ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
    If they didn't do it they get the same 'not guilty' verdict, so what is the recourse for someone who was falsely charged. I am specifically thinking of the US where there are a lot of black men falsely convicted of violent crimes they did not commit because of racist eye witness testimony and prosecutors who want higher conviction rates.
    
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- Fosheze@lemmy.world ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  He was found guilty both times he raped someone. Considering he served less than 2 years in prison for his last offence I highly doubt that changed him.
  
  Also considering that he’s a rapist I don’t give a damn how he feels. Rape isn’t like other crimes. You don’t rape someone because you don’t know any better. You don’t rape someone out of necessity. You don’t rape someone on accident. You rape someone because you’re a rabid animal who has no place in society. You don’t fix someone like that. You can only mitigate the risk to others.
  
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  - mugthol@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
    In your the last sentences of your last paragraph you could exchange the word rape for murder and it would still be true. Similarly for most crimes there is no necessity. So I really don’t understand why you think “rape isn’t like other crimes”.
    
    It seems like you have your own irrational opinion that you don’t want to change so I really don’t see the point in this discussion.
    
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kirklennon@kbin.social ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

I know that you can’t fire someone just for being a sex offender unless it directly interferes with work duties (in the US)

You can definitely fire someone for being a sex offender in the US. Outside of a few exceptions that probably don't apply in your case, you can also fire someone for being an accused sex offender.

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- BottleOfAlkahest@lemmy.world ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  Many US based companies also do pre-employment background checks. So either OP works for a company that doesn’t or they work for a “second chance” company that is OK with violent backgrounds. Either way the company is fine with his background and is very unlikely to fire him for something they likely knew about at hire.
  
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BlameThePeacock@lemmy.ca ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Generally when you commit a crime, you get convicted, complete your sentence, and then you get all of your rights back unless you’re deemed a risk to the public in which case you may have additional restrictions on your freedom.

Not everyone re-offends. In fact, for many types of crimes, the recidivism rate is fairly low. Your assumption that this person is going to put women at risk is short sighted, especially given the fact that a person is FAR more likely to be sexually assaulted by their own romantic partner than a random person.

The problem with banning someone from any sort of employment where they have contact with the other gender, is that that essentially prevents them from working in any capacity. There are no industries with only a single gender across the entire organization. If they hired only men, it would be considered discriminatory and they could be sued.

It also doesn’t in any way reflect the fact that this person will encounter women everywhere, from the grocery store to the gas station. Work is hardly the only place where people encounter others.

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- mvilain@kbin.social ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  I AM NOT A LAWYER nor have I slept in a Motel 6 recently, but I believe in California, someone convicted of a sex-related crime becomes a "registered sex offender" for life. They can't live near schools and there are other restrictions. During employee-onboarding, HR must have discovered that this guy has a criminal record. If not, you should discuss this with your manager and HR. If they're a registered sex offender, then the company should follow the guidelines for employing such people.
  
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  - BlameThePeacock@lemmy.ca ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
    Who said anything about California?
    
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solitaire@infosec.pub ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
If you aren’t going to find a new job, document any inappropriate behavior. Talk to the other women and get them onboard. Let them know who he is. It wont take much to have him out on his ass if he does anything. Bring up his conviction when you report misconduct as well.

There are plenty of jobs he can work that aren’t with the best friend of his victim.

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HelixDab2@lemm.ee ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Unless he’s doing things that currently put other people at risk, maybe mind your own business? Part of rehabilitation is convicts re-integrating into society, including having a job, paying for their own way in life, etc. If you really want to make sure that people keep bouncing in and out of prison, sure, keep doing your best to get people fired for things they’ve already served their time on.

You insist that no rapist can ever e rehabilitated; on what metric do you base that belief? Or, in other words, what kind of objective evidence do you have that this is true?

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Draedron@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
He needs to work somewhere and as long as he doesnt continue to harass or worse anyone I dont see the issue

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DessertStorms@kbin.social ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Hey OP, if all else fails, there seem to be a lot of people in these comments willing to give a rapist a job, so he could always go and babysit their kids, or drive their sister home late at night in a taxi, or be the orderly watching their sedated aunt who is recovering in hospital, I'm sure none of them would mind any of that..

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- BluesF@lemmy.world ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  There’s a pretty far cry between leaving a sex offender alone with your child and just having them in an office where there are other people.
  
  What is the alternative to giving rapists jobs? Either they literally are in prison for life, they get the death penalty, or they live on the streets. None of these options seems ideal. Prison is hugely expensive and doesn’t give any opportunity for rehabilitation. The death penalty is rightly abolished where I live, I don’t believe any crime is worth it. And just casting rapists into society with no hope of rehabilitation is a sure way to make them reoffend in one way or another.
  
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transientpunk@sh.itjust.works ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
I just found out that if you are caught having sex in prison (in the USA), you are guilty of a sex crime regardless of if both adults consented or not.

This is only tangentially related to OPs post, but I just thought it was interesting.

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mechoman444@lemmy.world ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Look. I get it. But, understand the only reason you feel that way is because you haven’t committed a crime severe enough for you to do any significant time.

Recidivism for rape is 13% to 35% Link to source

I would seriously recommend checking your privilege on this one.

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hperrin@lemmy.world ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Holy shit, how is he not in prison?

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Harbinger01173430@lemmy.world ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
He had his redemption arc and now is a better human being than 95% of his co-workers. Duh.

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THEMASTERMIND@feddit.ch ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
I doesn’t butbit is what it is . In my opinion rapists should be put to death or given life sentence in prison where they can work till the end of their life.

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AlteredEgo@lemmy.ml ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Sorry that must be really horrible working near someone like that. I’m also sorry there are a lot of shitty comments. It’s quite shocking he only served 2 years.

You could ask an attorney, it’s possibly you could already sue your employer. There are also surely people or groups who have experience with this kind of thing.

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DessertStorms@kbin.social ⁨9⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Hey OP, if all else fails, there seem to be a lot of people in these comments willing to give a rapist a job, so he could always go and babysit their kids, or drive their sister home late at night in a taxi, or be the orderly watching their sedated aunt who is recovering in hospital, I'm sure none of them would mind any of that..

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