How a corporation dictates behavior is usually started and mannered from the top to bottom..... what does this say about Bill Gates?
The treatment that gay users receive of Microsoft's Xbox has no one surprised of how the Xbox's employees are treated as well. The company is rampant with homophobia.
The treatment of gays at Microsoft Xbox corporate are atrocious: banning gay gamers, letting openly gay lesbians get harassed on the Xbox Live service, homophobic jokes are commonplace, peers pass around hate notes--what are we back in 10th grade?, and there is not a rulebook protecting against sexual orientation discrimination.
Jamie Durrant has taken upon himself to sue for nearly $70,000:
Mr Durrant claims that mocking messages were circulated with headings including 'I'm Jim and I'm Gay', 'Me and My Favourite Men' and 'Ladies Are Bad'. A message about 'Fag Boy Jim' was allegedly put up in the office's shared kitchen. Mr Durrant earns £50,000-a-year designing video games for Microsoft's Xbox 360 console.
He claims that the firm did not have policies in place to deal with his complaints about homophobic harassment. Mr Durrant, of Godalming, Surrey, is suing Microsoft at London South Employment Tribunal for discrimination on the ground of sexual orientation. He has been signed off sick for depression for seven months and is demanding £45,000 in compensation for lost earnings and injury to feelings.
[...] In legal papers submitted to the tribunal, Mr Durrant claimed that the abusive emails were first sent in January last year. He said: "I have never hidden my sexuality from the office and I felt this could be targeted at myself. This was not the first time there was homophobic content in the office. Previously, I had tried to deal with it myself. This time, I did not feel that I could."
Mr Durrant said he complained to human resources chiefs that there was a "homophobic attitude" within Microsoft. He claimed he agreed with them not to raise a formal grievance for fear of creating an "uneasy atmosphere" in the office.
Instead, it was allegedly agreed that HR would email staff reminding them of "how to behave responsibly in a diverse office".
Mr Durrant said he expected the email to be sent within a fortnight but months went by without anything happening. When he queried the delay, he says he was allegedly told that the firm would have to draw up new policies before any email could be sent. He said: "I was very surprised that Microsoft did not have any policies relating to this sexual orientation harassment."
Mr Durrant claimed that he did not think HR chiefs were taking his complaint seriously.
He was allegedly asked to sign a document agreeing not to raise a formal grievance and confirming that he was happy his complaint was being dealt with. He said that he refused but it was agreed that Microsoft would post its anti-discrimination policy on the firm's intranet for staff to see. Mr Durrant has accused Microsoft HR chiefs of "blatantly disregarding" and "obstructing" his complaint.
He said he was offered counselling but said: "I feel like they're making out that I'm the one with the problem and not the homophobic aspects of the company."
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