to advise my workplace against this guy?

[THEACAFEA]

I work in a job which requires me to protect the public. Someone who did me a favour once asked me to return it, and meet with his friend and give him advice regarding entering my line of work. It's not sensitive work, so I did it. Seemed like a nice bloke but got a funny vibe from him. I gave him loads of advice, and he took it on board and has applied.

He popped up on my Instagram as his number is linked. So I had a look... he's odd. He posts a lot of photos of him in the bath, follows a lot of very young looking half naked women, posts photos of him in the mirror with his penis almost on show (pubic hair visible), has had a few conversations with women which are pretty crude and disgusting... he's even posted saying 'don't message me unless you're legal' - legal to me means 16, and he is in his 40s. I know this is his life, but in my line of work, this would be completely unacceptable and I'm not sure management would want someone like this working for them. Women's rights and the protection of vulnerable women and children etc.

If I tell them, it would likely get back to the person who asked me for the favour...

My gut tells me to speak to management. Something else tells me to let them get on with it and hopefully find out for themselves...

What would you do? WIBU to report?

nannyCrumb
Raising potential safeguarding concerns has nothing to do with doing 'something illegal'.

If a member of staff in a school is spending extensive 1-1 with a student abd other members of staff had a concern, they would be right to raise it. That is safeguarding. Sure the member of staff hasn't sone anything illegal and it may be (probably would be) innocent, but safeguarding is about keeping all parties safe.

If a man in his 40s is posting nudes/semi nudes and has disclaimers about girla only messaging him if they're legal then that's a potential safeguarding issue. What's a 40 year old man doing being sexually interested in teens to the point where legality comes into it?

If he got the job, heaven forbid there was an issue and it was found the OP had him on social media and failed to report then she is risking her career.

I'm going to report it today, just wasn't sure if it was the right thing to do but I can clearly see that it is now. Thanks everyone!

If OP is a normal confident woman who feels she wouldn't go for coffee with this guy, then why would you want vulnerable woman and children to be alone with him?

I think you need to speak up and let your managers know, they will have other candidates.

You have to report it before they hire him. Once he is hired, it will be so much more difficult for your employer. They will thank you, believe me. You can pass it on and leave it with the decision maker to do what they will with the info. If they decide he is still the best person for the job, you cannot be criticised for it.

Can you do it informally first to someone friendly, perhaps HR and bring your phone and ask what is the best way to deal with this.

Just read you are going to report it. It is the right thing.

I'm glad you've decided to bring it to their attention. It's the right decision; you have an duty to safeguard vulnerable women and children.

I can't get my head around the poster who wants people to actively go against their gut and actual account postings that make you go ewwww, inappropriate! Putting the burden on potential minors to not send/receive pics over the internet rather than a 40 year old man! Ewwww.

Anyone who gets their kicks out of posting pictures of himself almost showing his penis, and lot of semi-nude pictures of young women he doesn't even know isn't likely to be the kind of person who should be working with vulnerable women and children.

If he does get the job, and he turns out to be a tosser, and it becomes known that you have him tips to help him then it will look bad on you, by association.

If OP is a normal confident woman who feels she wouldn't go for coffee with this guy, then why would you want vulnerable woman and children to be alone with him?
I agree, but feeling a bit eww or uncomfortable about someone isn't grounds for reporting.
I think the OP has to be very clear that she is reporting on objective, factual grounds (e.g. lots of nude/semi nude/sexually suggestive photos, comments about the legality of teens messaging him).

Are you going to report face to face OP? I think that's the right decision.

Definitely report

I teach. This would be a sackable offence even though I teach adults. We are warned either not to have social media, to alter our names on there or in the very least keep it completely private.

Your work should check his social media out for themselves, many workplaces now do. He sounds like a sleaze.

I would take someone aside, and briefly say ‘I had some contact with this person prior to applying, and I have some concerns which may or may not be relevant. Please let me know how you want to proceed.’

When I worked in Probation, your gut feeling was your first reference; it was acceptable to bring up a safeguarding conversation with a colleague because "something was off" and then investigate on that basis. In ANYTHING in the UK which might go to child safety, you are responsible for disclosing any information you have; if not you can be held jointly responsible for consequences to any child. Not your problem to decide on it, but you have to pass the information on.

I work in a similar field to you.
A guy who works within our team had to enforce against particular community members.
They found out who he was looked through his historic social media & found a photo of him posing saying 'I am a badass'
They used this against him, put a formal complaint in questioning his integrity etc.

In our role we really do need to be transparent so yes I would report it.

Lets boil it down to basics: a guy who seems to have a certain interest in very young girls is looking to move into a field where he will potentially have authority and access to such young (vulnerable) ppl.

No, he hasn’t done anything illegal (that you or anyone knows off, anyways).

But it does not look pretty and you know exactly where my thoughts are going.

Share your concerns with management. Absolutely.

Defintely the right thing to report. After all, just asking the question why a man with these "proclivities" is so keen to get into the work you describe raises a HUGE red flag immediately.

What's in it for him?
Could it be the potential to abuse?