Goldman Sachs might be cleaning up its potty mouth — telling workers that it’ll bar filthy language in e-mails and use software to screen for it — but some Chicago-area companies have different philosophies.
“We do not have a policy on the use of curse words in e-mails,” said Lee Mitchell, managing partner for Chicago-based Thoma Bravo LLC.
But “now that Congress’ ‘financial reform’ legislation has made us subject to SEC regulation, I guess the SEC will be telling us which words are a systemic threat to the global economy and, therefore, have to be banned,” the private equity executive cheekily added.
Naperville-based OfficeMax doesn’t have a policy specific to the use of swear words in e-mail either, but said it expects workers “to present themselves in a professional and helpful manner in all communications.”
Glenview State Bank does, however, have a policy prohibiting the use of profanity in e-mails but doesn’t use software to screen for it.
“While a content management software solution has been discussed, it is not on our roadmap for the near future,” Executive Vice President David Kreiman said.
Northbrook-based Allstate Corp. said it has had a policy against profanity in e-mails in place for years.
“Each year all Allstate employees review and acknowledge a code of ethics which includes an information technology usage policy,” an Allstate spokesman said. “We make it known that offensive and indecent language or messages are not tolerated.”
If someone violates the policy at Allstate, it could result in disciplinary action, including possible termination, he said.
The Wall Street Journal wrote about Goldman’s new policy on Thursday.
The firm was haunted by a six-letter expletive that came to light at a Senate hearing in April.
“[B]oy, that timberwo[l]f was one s—– deal,” Thomas Montag, who helped run Goldman’s securities business, wrote in a June 2007 e-mail repeatedly referred to at the hearing.
Montag wouldn’t be allowed to send that e-mail under Goldman’s new policy, which is being enforced by screening software, the newspaper reported.
W-T-F?
I guess CBS will have to take away Sid the Cussing Rabbit’s e-mail privileges. Sid is so [ooh lah lah] that he will [toostsy fruitsy] about it.
The point — which, as usual, seems to escape the regulators and bureaucrats behind these idiotic ideas — isn’t about banning specific words. If people want to say “****,” — at least between one another in a private context — they should be able to. It is the ATTITUDE reflected in the Goldman e-mails that was the problem–a complete disregard for their fiduciary duties, as expressed in their USE of the term “shitty.”
shitty . . . shitty . . . . . bang . . . . . bang
There is a reason it’s call: vulgarity….
Business that don’t have class won’t last long.
Dont people realize e-mails can last forever? I’m sure bosses check it too. I loved that they released the e-mails showing what contempt they have for people. The few times my department was involved with lawyers – they asked for every piece of paper, even stuff that had no bearing on the case.
There are some very useful characters on every keyboard: !@#$%&*?
I ignore the ones that contain profanity. It’s always fun to explain to that individual that I deal with professionals,
cant take a joke, f— em
Bottom line, no one can say nothin’ no where anymore.
Some emails may seem appropriate at the time, even if they include a “profanity”. But in this day and age there are many bloggers, screamers, twitteriers and cable news people who do (or want to) make their living based on the best target for a hit and the most agressive response, for the public to see and then click on.
Ooppss.. does that sound too aggressive? As I understand it, the NSA stores about 1 billion emails per day just to make sure that a “target for a hit” doesn’t go too far.