Today I was told "remove your T-shirt or remove yourself

from the jobsite. I am a union Sheet Metal worker, working on a project in San Mateo, Calif. My T-shirt was from the "Not in our Name Project. It has a picture of the hooded prisoner from AbuGraib torture session with the question "Got Democracy? After lunch today, I was told to either remove the shirt or remove myself from the jobsite. It happened that I had another shirt available and I changed into it. Then I started thinking about it. People with American flags and shit like "these colores don't run" aren't asked to disrobe. Why was I?
I have a call in to the AC.L.U., my union, and the San Jose Mercury News. Have not heard back from any of them yet. Thoughts?

They're not being Un-American. You were. It's so obvious.

<SIGH>

Do you think it's possible someone complained about the shirt being offensive to their delicate sensibilities?

I'm glad you're not taking it lying down, though. Good for you! Let us know what happens.

Call your state rep. and Senator too.

You can wear the shirt... just not on the job and nobody is forcing anybody to work there. All political t-shirts should really be banned from many work places. Not everybody is going to have the same political views and it's really an invitation for trouble and hurt feelings as we see here.

can ware shirts glorifying Bush but are not allowed to wear dissenting shirts. This is, after all, a construction site, not a Bush rally.

This is blatant and against the basic principle of free speech.

First Amendment guarantees agasint the GOVERNMENT interfering with your right to free speech. All other organizations aren't covered. We get to censor and be censored to our hearts' content.

dress policy? ... interested in developments.

We need to truss ourselves up like Turkies so the insurance companies don't have losses but for the most part, we are just meat on the hoof.

in your case. Allowing one side of political views and not the other is usually a big no-no, but God knows what these fucking employers are allowed to do these days.

I can't tell you how many loudmouthed assholes wanted to duke it out with me because I had a peace sign on my bumper in the late 60's. And part of the time I lived in Berkeley for crissakes. And I was a vet. I'm 6'2" and at the time I weighed about 200 so they always backed down when I got out of the car, but some guys I worked with had America love it or leave it bumper stickers and they somehow never had to put up with the same kind of bullshit. Some things never change but I think you can force the issue if you're willing to push it.

Even if you are a union member, something like this is could be easy to discipline you for, especially when everybody has cell phone cameras. I'd just try to question the policy and point out others with political shirts and see what happens. Maybe file a grievance.

I don't think I'd deliberately provoke anybody today, maybe because I'm older wiser and fatter.

Weigh about 230# and don't take shit from anybody. I guess I'm just a big hippie.

They should cover this situation.

is considered disrespectful to the flag-if you go by the book. Those who wear it to show their patriotism haven't learned the "proper" display of the flag.

I hope each of the parties you contacted takes a piece out of your boss - and his boss!

http://www.senate.gov/reference/resources/pdf/RL30243.pdf

Of course, it's an unenforceable code.

The bill of Rights covers ONLY GOVERNMENT BEHAVIOR, not private behavior. An employer can ask his employees to dress as the Employer demands (Unless it is a violation of some other statute, for example the Civil Rights Act). I can NOT see your T-Shirt meeting any of the protection under the Civil Rights Act, thus unless the union Contract covers this you have to remove the T-shirt WHILE ON PRIVATE PROPERTY OR WORKING FOR YOUR EMPLOYER (Once off the job Site and NO longer working for your employer you can wear the T-shirt).

on shirts on the job site, I would have no problem with it. This is not the case. Shirts, glorifying our great leader, God, and country, are all over the site. I am the only one who has been asked to disrobe or leave. Additionally, the porta potties are full of the most racist diatribe you have ever seen. Comments like Mexican babies being hatched beneath toilet seat, Please do not feed, are among some of the least offensive remarks yet nothing is said about this.

I am sorry the law gives employees very little protection is this type of situation. On the other hand Contact your local news station and tell them you were told to remove your shirt for it "Offended" your employer, but that same employer will NOT stop the racist/sexist material in the work place. Many employers will NOT want the publicity of having permitted racist material in their work place, while cracking down on free speech when it reflects your strongly held beliefs (Through be careful, many employers will want to get back at you for causing the stink, if you do contact the media make sure you follow ALL of your employer's rules to the letter).

Another angle is to file a complaint with your State Equal Opportunity Commission about the racist material and that it is causing a hostile work environment for you, for you find such racist material offensive. Just because you are white does NOT mean you can NOT be offended by Racist material.

One last comment, check your Labor Contract on disciplinary actions. For example if the bulletin board has a statement on who you are to complain to about the work environment, follow those rules to the letter. It may NOT prevent you from being fired, but it may permit you to get unemployment. Remember you can NOT get unemployment in most states if you are fired for "Willful Misconduct" including NOT listening to your boss as to what you wear, BUT if you can show a hostile work environment in many states that is Just cause to quit PROVIDED YOU FOLLOWED THE Complaint chain of Command as set forth in your employee handbook or bulletin board. You also need to check with your union (Most of my Clients are non-union and therefore MUST follow those procedure set forth in the Handbook or on the Bulletin Board, your rights are further defined in the Union Contract).

don't give a flying fuck if I get fired. There is so much work here that employers are begging for qualified workers. I will not be unemployed long enough to get a good rest. Nice place to be in for a change.

this tee shirt, "Not in our Name Project", thing works out to your satifaction!

On a serious note, I believe your first amendment was violated today.

You want to stay in good with the union.

It should have gone thru union reps no, if so it is not an offical request, even if it came from the company owner who put your union on that contract. It should have gone thru channels.

You don't have to go through union reps to request something from your employees.

right....

Good luck to you...keep us posted. It's a damn shame that America has become so fascist. Heartbreaking, actually.

you don't have to remove it. Just turn it inside out.

Be friendly with your local union political committee. That means you all participate actively and everyone knows that you all are pretty much acting on behalf of your union. You are likely to get fewer challenges to what you do.

We are nobodies red-headed stepchild. This is Pelosi country and elections have consequences.

not private censorship.

C'mon, people, we gotta do better than this.

but in no way shape or form is this a 1st Amendment issue.

here! Most folks think I'm a moderate which ain't bad for a left wing, socialist whose family nickname is "Comrade".

By picking out a different t-shirt for tomorrow, that has a different political message, and see what they say about it. "F the war" would be a nice one. Che Guevara pictures are common on t-shirts as well. It would be funny to see which ones they reject and which ones they accept (or don't understand). Document them all with pictures, but when asked to remove it, do so without argument, so they don't have any reason to fire you. Obviously they don't have a policy against all t-shirts with slogans or messages, only those they don't like.

I bet people here would send you new t-shirts to wear, if you asked.

You'll stop wearing the t-shirt when bush stops torturing detainees
until then the "were # 1 club can fuck off a die!

and that client didn't like the message on your shirt, then they probably had the right to force you to change or leave. Most construction contracts (twenty years a contract manager here) have what's called an "objectionable man" clause that states that an individual can be pulled from the jobsite for pretty much whatever reason that client cares to give -- or no reason, if that's the case.

With the exception of the 13th Amendment. They can have you wear/not wear, say/not say whatever they want. A couple unions for the Ford auto plant banned pro-Bush bumber stickers from union parking lots, and they were fully within their rights to do so.

Would there not need to be a written policy.

For example, at a previous job, there was an employee rule forbidding wearing campaign buttons or displaying campaign material. Making that rule and then enforcing it subsequently IS allowable.

But, you can't just make crap up as you go along. If the boss was a flaming liberal and harassed someone for wearing a "God bless Bush" T-shirt, I would be on the employee's side in that case as well.

the time to act was THEN, not now.