To think work are being ridiculous

[Dolphin8765]

For work the main lanyard we are issued is a purple wire thin lanyard (photo attached). Myself and some other colleagues don’t like thin lanyards like that. The only other lanyard we are issued is wider like a normal lanyard, it’s a pride lanyard with the company logo on. We’ve asked work if we can buy and use our own lanyard and we were told. Aibu to think work are being a bit strict and ridiculous? What difference does it make if we use our own lanyard?

Wearing a visible political symbol, not because it is your free choice to do so, but because your employer would like you to do so, when your employer is not a political organisation, should not be part of anyone's job.

Once again, would you be making these arguments if the lanyard had the Conservatuve Party logo on it, or Black Lives Matter, or support for Palestine, or support for Israel, or Mormonism, or pro choice, or pro life, or Manchester United?

You'd be happy to wear a lanyard with any of those things on it even though it has nothing to do with your job? Really?

The rainbow lanyard shouldn't be one of the options. It's political. And choosing not to wear the rainbow lanyard (the only political opinion staff are allowed/encouraged/tricked to express through their workwear) is probably exposing people to speculation as to WHY they don't want to wear the rainbow one.

Once again. Would you be saying the same thing if the two choices were purple or "Vote Tory"?

Or is it just because you personally don't have a problem with the rainbow and what it stands for that you are deliberately ignoring the point?

I don't work in the UK. If I did, I would not want to have to explain to my employer why I didn't want to wear a rainbow lanyard.

Not because I think I am wrong. But because I'm certain it would harm my career prospects.

Maybe I've been out of the UK for so long but I can't believe people are so willing to put up with this stuff.

So you’ve made your views on the rainbow one very clear and that’s fine
so OP has 2 choices
the rainbow one ( which in your opinion dictates political choices )

the purple one ( which has no political choice)

there is no issue sensory or comfort wise with the purple one by OP own admission the only problem is she doesn’t like it

so nobody is being forced to make any statement
I’ve had some horrendously hideous uniforms over the years but that’s part and parcel of the job you suck it up or leave

for the life of me I can’t understand why posters on here think she’s been forced to wear something which makes a statement when there an alternative that doesn’t

I simply don't believe you.

In France if an employer pulled this sort of stunt, people would be saying, "Woah woah woah! Why is one of these options a political symbol? That's not right. You don't own my thoughts. What will the consequences be if I don't want to wear it? This is completely inappropriate!" and they'd be on the phone to their union before lunchtime.

Your uniform actually relates to your job. A rainbow lanyard doesn't.

A rainbow lanyard is a political symbol and not something employers should be procuring or suggesting their employees wear. It's completely overstepping the mark.

And if it was anything other than a rainbow, everyone would understand the point being made here. But because Stonewall has done such a number on the UK, you accept this as normal.

Of course I don't believe you. You're not believable.

If you were a Labour voter and your employer offered you a choice of two lanyards, "Vote Tory" or purple, you wouldn't just take the purple one and not give it a second thought.

You'd think, "Wait, why is there a Vote Tory one? What does that have to do with my job? Why is there the option to wear a Vote Tory lanyard but not a Vote Labour one? Will it harm my career prospects if they know I vote Labour?"

Because these are all normal questions to be asking in this scenario.

But because the political symbol is a rainbow and its motto is "no debate", and because women have actually been fired for questioning aspects of what it stands for, people pretend this is normal.

And then say that those who question it must be bitter and miserable because it's easier than having an actual argument.

The consequence is you wear the purple one
why or you deliberately ignoring the fact there is a non political statement one available

Uh huh.

And when someone asks you why you don't wear the nice rainbow one, what do you say?

Or if you're going for an internal promotion against someone who obediently wears the political lanyard, and the other person gets the job, how confident can you really be that it was about who was the best candidate, and not that your employer suspects you might be some kind of horrible bigot because you choose not to wear the rainbow lanyard?

And regardless of which lanyard you wear, when a trans identifying male starts using the women's changing rooms and showers and you find this really triggering because you're a sexual assault survivor and you don't feel safe being around male strangers in that kind of environment, how confident are you that your employer will listen to you if you raise it?

Because I expect their response would be either, "We're really surprised you have a problem with this, trans women are women after all and deserve to feel safe and comfortable using the facilities which match their gender identity", if you wear the rainbow lanyard, or "We always knew you were a bigot and this confirms it", if you don't.

If you think this sort of thing doesn't have consequences, you are shockingly naive.

The only way to respect and protect all your employees equally is to keep politics out of the workplace.

Thanks for your concern, but I'm perfectly happy with my life.

Less happy with how people in the UK are sleepwalking into an Orwellian style dictatorship, but on the plus side, I don't have to live there.

Wow

I'm with you @RosaBonheur This bowing at the altar of Stonewall is actually quite sinister but I'm encouraged that more and more people feel able to speak out about it.

Perhaps some posters haven't experienced where this is taking us? I have lesbian friends and family who tell me that dating apps have been taken over by men claiming to be women and speak of the abuse when offers to meet are turned down, and a close family member has withdrawn from a competitive physical sport because a 6ft 5 intact male joined her ladies team (and it looks like they can't get sufficient numbers to continue). As a pp said, all for shiny Stonewall points.

Who exactly are you addressing here? If it's not @RosaBonheur, as you are writing about her rather than responding directly to her, then you must be speaking in general about this poster to the rest of the thread.

Other posters can make up our own minds who we do and don't want to engage with. We have no need for prompts, thanks.

You're also making a lot of assumptions about someone from a few lines of typeface. The fact that someone feels strongly about a particular issue isn't an indication that they are 'bitter'. Such comments undermine you rather than your target.

It is the case here, every other employer seems to be trying to get into Stonewall’s top 100 employers or what ever.

You say bollocks to the gender stuff but seem keen on maintaining the status quo.

^ to @ShapesAndNumbers

Absolutely this.

I think the rainbow lanyard thing is particularly insidious because it will have been "suggested" by Stonewall to all these employers as a really nice, simple, cheap, low effort way to demonstrate their inclusiveness.

Employers jump at it because it's an easy way to improve their diversity rankings.

Employees don't generally question it, either because they don't give a shit what kind of lanyard they are wearing, or because they have no idea what the rainbow stands for, or because they think it's all about being kind and supporting gay and lesbian people's right to marry and nice stuff like that, or in some cases because they're afraid of getting a P45 in the post if they do question it.

So if you have all these people, working for all these different organisations, walking around in their rainbow lanyards and publicly demonstrating support for the Stonewall agenda, whether they want to/mean to/know they're doing it or not, what are the consequences of that?

It gives Stonewall the ability to say, "This is the prevailing viewpoint now so get with the programme and put your pronouns in your email signature. And if you don't, well, you're in the minority. Nobody agrees with you."

It's done to make it look like the people who support their ideology are far more numerous than they actually are, and turn anyone who doesn't into a pariah.

Thank you, @SerafinasGoose.

Well said, Rosa.

Is there a bingo card for MRA comments on this thread?

• angry woman
• woman with issues
• projecting your own issues onto trans women
• sad woman
• miserable woman
• bitter woman

Shapes post seems to include them all.