Answer:
Apparently, yes, if the ringtone is sexually explicit. An employee of Trane U.S., which is a subsidiary of Ingersoll Rand, recently filed suit in federal court alleging that her supervisor intentionally subjected her to a sexually explicit cellphone ringtone. The employee claims that she let her supervisor know that the ringtone, which mimicked the sound of a woman having an orgasm, offended her. Rather than changing the ringtone, the supervisor purportedly kept using it and also tried to engage her in sex talk. The employee further alleges that HR failed to investigate her complaints and then that she was retaliated against in the form of various adverse employment actions, which culminated in her termination. Trane now faces litigation for sexual harassment and retaliation.
Now more than ever, employers must provide workplaces that are free from sexual harassment. This includes monitoring employees’ electronic devices, even if they are personal devices. If an employee wants to use an inappropriate or potentially offensive ringtone outside of work, that’s probably not the employer’s business, even though it may not show the best judgment on the employee’s part. On the other hand, when those types of ringtones are used in the workplace, it can quickly become the employer’s problem. Consider implementing a policy against disruptive or offensive ringtones in the workplace. Alternatively, consider whether it may be appropriate to have a policy that requires that cellphones be kept on silent or vibrate mode during working hours. This combats both potentially offensive ringtones, as well as the annoying co-worker who leaves her desk without her cellphone and makes her neighbors endure a cycle (or many cycles) of distracting rings.
About the Author: Laura Liss (lliss@pfs-law.com) is Chair of Patzik Frank and Samotny’s Employment Law Practice Group. She provides both legal and practical business advice on all phases of employment-related decisions. She regularly serves as a sounding board for business owners, executives and human resources professionals and assists them in successfully and efficiently navigating the various employment laws that impact their businesses.
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