Brit Hume Suggests Sexual Harassment Law To Blame For Herman Cain’s Problems
Reported by Guest Blogger - November 2, 2011 -
By Brian
It’s true that Herman Cain may be innocent of sexual harassment, that his employer, the National Restaurant Association, may have made a strategic decision to settle rather than litigate against two women and that the matter remains, perhaps unfairly, on Cain’s record now. But Brit Hume took this possibility as an indictment of sexual harassment laws rather than, say, Cain’s failure to adequately deal with the questions surrounding his conduct. (H/T Media Matters)
Hume spoke about employees being "at a terrible disadvantage" at one time in terms of sexual harassment. But now, he said, "Superiors are at an equal or greater disadvantage. Not only are unwanted advances now against the law, but so is conduct that may be found to create, quote an 'intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment.' The problem is that what is intimidating, hostile, or offensive to some nay not be to others. Innocently intended compliments may be welcome to one person but may give offense to another."
Media Matters highlights the fact that Hume’s claim, that a worker’s complaint could be based on a subjective idea of harassment in the workplace, is at odds with a 1993 Supreme Court case which unanimously decided that a workplace must “objectively” conduct a hostile or abusive environment to meet the standard.
Video via Media Matters
