Is it discrimination on the basis of gender if I am fired because my boss' wife was threatened by my looks?

[cbg]

I think a) could potentially arguably be discrimination on the basis of gender because his wife would not care if I was a handsome man.

Ah, but would the wife care if you were an UGLY woman? Or even a plain one? Or only because you're so insanely beautiful?

If not, then it's not GENDER but APPEARANCE.

 

[AlmostThere]

That might be the best option for me now. I just am worried my boss' wife will try to ruin my reputation wherever I go next.

Go someplace else. Different location. Different type of employer.

 

[Just Blue]

Go someplace else. Different location. Different type of employer.

Yup...and don't "do" the employer line up. Have some respect for yourself and your body.

 

[paddywakk]

Oh I see. The managing partner at my previous firm mentioned something like "payment in lieu" which is what I thought he was referring to. That sucks if I get nothing for the six months I was there.

Got your wages, didn't you?

 

[Skylar91]

UPDATE: I was pulled into a meeting with HR and the managing partner at the firm this morning. I am not being fired, thankfully, but am being reassigned to another lawyer, a woman. I'm relieved I wasn't fired but I'm not too happy about this arrangement as I tend to get along much better with men than women and have only worked for men in the past. My boss and I had a great working relationship and I had gotten used to working for him, I'm not happy I have to learn how to work under a different person. It definitely seems like an overreaction from his wife being insecure about him working with me.

 

[cbg]

Tough cookies. They're allowed to "overreact" if they want to. Personally I think it sounds like the best solution possible short of firing you. And the sooner you learn that in the office, you have to be prepared to get along with all kinds of people, the better. The world does not revolve around you and what you like. They can assign you to work anywhere in the office they want to.

 

[Just Blue]

UPDATE: I was pulled into a meeting with HR and the managing partner at the firm this morning. I am not being fired, thankfully, but am being reassigned to another lawyer, a woman. I'm relieved I wasn't fired but I'm not too happy about this arrangement as I tend to get along much better with men than women and have only worked for men in the past. My boss and I had a great working relationship and I had gotten used to working for him, I'm not happy I have to learn how to work under a different person. It definitely seems like an overreaction from his wife being insecure about him working with me.

Yeah...the problem was how well you "got along" with the men you worked on...for. Take some personal responsibility for your actions and stop blaming others for being understandably uncomfortable having you near their mates.

 

[stealth2]

UPDATE: I was pulled into a meeting with HR and the managing partner at the firm this morning. I am not being fired, thankfully, but am being reassigned to another lawyer, a woman. I'm relieved I wasn't fired but I'm not too happy about this arrangement as I tend to get along much better with men than women and have only worked for men in the past. My boss and I had a great working relationship and I had gotten used to working for him, I'm not happy I have to learn how to work under a different person. It definitely seems like an overreaction from his wife being insecure about him working with me.

Seems a smart solution on the part of your employer.

 

[PayrollHRGuy]

You have got to be a troll. but if you aren't...

I'm not too happy about this arrangement as I tend to get along much better with men than women and have only worked for men in the past.

Of course, you do. Having sex with someone generally creates a certain comradery.

 

[doucar]

Who is discriminating on the basis of sex now?

 

[AlmostThere]

UPDATE: I was pulled into a meeting with HR and the managing partner at the firm this morning. I am not being fired, thankfully, but am being reassigned to another lawyer, a woman. I'm relieved I wasn't fired but I'm not too happy about this arrangement as I tend to get along much better with men than women and have only worked for men in the past. My boss and I had a great working relationship and I had gotten used to working for him, I'm not happy I have to learn how to work under a different person. It definitely seems like an overreaction from his wife being insecure about him working with me.

Here is an opportunity to improve your skills when it comes to working with other women. Perhaps your employer's EAP program can help with that. You can also use this time as an opportunity to look for a different job..

 

[not2cleverRed]

You have got to be a troll. but if you aren't...



Of course, you do. Having sex with someone generally creates a certain comradery.

OP could try playing for the other team and see if that helps her get along with the female boss.

 

[Taxing Matters]

I'm relieved I wasn't fired but I'm not too happy about this arrangement as I tend to get along much better with men than women and have only worked for men in the past.

If you want to get ahead in any organization you are going to have to learn to work with/for women as well as men. It would have been illegal sexual discrimination for your employer to choose your assignment based on the sex of the boss you'd have. At one point or another you were likely to end up working for a female boss or on a team headed by a female coworker. The fact that you'd prefer male bosses isn't something the employer may consider in assigning you work, and looking only for male bosses may well shorten your career at any place that employs any significant number of women. This isn't a company problem. The fact that you have a higher comfort level working with men is YOUR issue to work out. The sex of your boss should not make a difference.

My boss and I had a great working relationship and I had gotten used to working for him, I'm not happy I have to learn how to work under a different person. It definitely seems like an overreaction from his wife being insecure about him working with me.

A lot of people are not happy with change. But in today's employment environment, most people are going to see some significant changes in their employment situation at least once and often several times throughout their careers. The people who do best are the ones who learn to adapt and even thrive on change. You don't want your superiors to think that you can't handle working for some specific group of people. That'll really end up limiting your options and likely eventually lead to termination.

 

[stealth2]

At one point or another you were likely to end up working for a female boss or on a team headed by a female coworker. The fact that you'd prefer male bosses isn't something the employer may consider in assigning you work, and looking only for male bosses may well shorten your career at any place that employs any significant number of women.

I'm actually quite surprised this hasn't come up for OP before. Given their (presumably) younger years, it's not like it was when some of us "longer in the tooth" folks were younger and most of those in professional/managerial positions were male.