Intern Who Won't Stop Hugging People At Work Gets Fired
Daniel Santos Young people who are new to the workforce may take a while to get accustomed to the dos and don’ts of Corporate America.
An internship is a great way to 'get your feet wet' and learn while you earn. Having a good boss to guide you will set you off in the right direction.
One manager took to the subreddit, AITA (Am-I-The-A—hole) to ask if she was wrong for firing an intern who just could not stop crossing professional boundaries.
She starts by telling readers that she runs the internship program at her job. Recently a 22-year-old woman, ‘Hester’ had joined for a 6-month stint.
The intern took to hugging all her coworkers so often that she had to be reprimanded.
Immediately after Hester started, the manager noticed that she was hugging her fellow interns a lot and addressed it in a one-on-one meeting.
According to the Redditor, “She didn't seem to like that feedback but didn’t say anything.”
The manager thought the issue had been resolved but was surprised when Hester tried to hug her again at a company gathering.
The intern’s performance review happened to be the next day, so the manager broached the subject once again.
She says she told Hester, “She needed to keep her hands to herself, that this was a workplace and not a social club, and reminded her that a lot of people, including myself, do not like being hugged.”
This time, she claims the young lady disagreed and said it was just the way that she greeted people and formed connections.
The Redditor told her she should find a more appropriate way of greeting them which lead to the intern “sulking.”
She gave her a final warning, stating, “This would be the last time I would be willing to have this conversation with her.”
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Now a new class of interns has joined the company and already two of them have approached the manager with concerns about Hester.
They said they had asked her to stop hugging them constantly, but the behavior had continued.
The manager tells readers that she did apologize and talked to other people on the intern team, finding that it was an ongoing problem.
Two days later, she pulled the handsy woman into her office and gave her walking papers. She explained that she had been warned about being too touchy-feely but had not stopped.
Hester did not like being told that she was making her colleagues uncomfortable and not learning ”work norms” so she pitched a fit and had to be escorted out of the workplace.
Now the young woman’s parents and professor are calling the manager pleading for her to be reinstated into the internship program.
They seem to think Hester’s behavior is no big deal. Now the manager is questioning whether or not she did the right thing.
The first comment, upvoted almost 12,000 times said, “NTA (not the a—hole). She was crossing boundaries and did not care.
Related Stories From YourTango:“More than that, she did not care that she was invading other people’s space and making them uncomfortable.”
“Her desire to hug people DOES NOT trump other people’s desire not to be touched. Her behavior was unprofessional and should not be tolerated. You were right to fire her.”
“Her parents and professor need to get a grip. If Hester were a man, I am sure they would get it.”
The general consensus was that people should keep their hands to themselves at work. If Hester continues to hug people at work in the future, losing a job might be the least of her troubles.”
NyRee Ausler is a writer from Seattle, Washington, and author of seven books. She covers lifestyle and entertainment and news, as well as navigating the workplace and social issues.
