Chicago Car Salesman Fired for Wearing Packers Tie to Work

[MyGodWearsAHoodie]

I guess I don't see a reason to make the guy remove his tie to begin with, and its just sour grapes from an angry Bears' fan on a power trip, IMO.

I am guessing you also don't agree with Tenshot that it is a disgrace to have a Patriots fan moderating a Dolphin's board. 

The reality is that there is more than an insignificant portion of the population that is less willing to buy a car from someone wearing a division rival's tie the day after a championship game loss.  You may not be in the population but those people certainly exist. 

I think a bar is different.  I doubt nearly as many folks would not visit a bar based on one of the many servers wearing the wrong jersey.   But I would not be the least bit surprised if the Jets waitress is hauling in less tips than her aqua and orange wearing coworkers. 

Just like not every Dolphin's board operates the same way, nor does every business.  Dave's willingness to have non-Dophin moderators doesn't make it wrong for another fan board to have a policy of only having fans that root for the team be mods.   

[Pappy13]

It shouldn't matter and his dress shouldn't affect his ability to make money for the dealership.  If he wears a pink shirt and the manager doesn't like pink, is that grounds for dismissal?  Can he be asked to remove his shirt?

The difference is that the dealership had some kind of deal with the Bears.  That's not something you want to jeopardize.  When it comes time to renew that partnership, you don't want the Bears telling you "Sorry but the day after a Bears loss to the Packers I was in your dealership and saw a guy wearing a Packers tie, we've decided that it's not in our best interests to renew our deal with you.".  That's a LOT different from the manager just not liking pink.

I work for Southwest Airlines and we have no dress code, so I can pretty much wear anything I want, but if I showed up with an American Airlines tie, I bet I would be asked to remove it.  When you represent a company, it's pretty much a given that you don't advertise your competitor's products which is pretty much what this comes down to.

[Brian Fein]

^^ that's different.  American Airlines is your direct competitor.  This guy didn't work for the Bears.  He didn't wear a "Joe Schmoe Toyota" tie either. 

My point is, what team you cheer for should have no bearing on what you can do as a person.

And, based on that, Hoodie, no, I don't agree with Tenshot on that particular point...

[Pappy13]

^^ that's different.  American Airlines is your direct competitor.  This guy didn't work for the Bears.  He didn't wear a "Joe Schmoe Toyota" tie either. 

My point is, what team you cheer for should have no bearing on what you can do as a person.

And, based on that, Hoodie, no, I don't agree with Tenshot on that particular point...

From my understanding, they had some type of deal with the Bears.  If you don't think the Bears and Packers are brand names, you are mistaken.  Having a deal in place with the Bears and wearing a Packers tie is essentially the same thing as advertising for a competitor.

[MyGodWearsAHoodie]

I work for Southwest Airlines and we have no dress code, so I can pretty much wear anything I want, but if I showed up with an American Airlines tie, I bet I would be asked to remove it.  When you represent a company, it's pretty much a given that you don't advertise your competitor's products which is pretty much what this comes down to.

Not a completely fair analogy on various levels.

You don't work with the public.  Everyone I have ever dealt with at your company not only as a dress code but a uniform.  

The Bears are not a competitor to the dealership like AA is to you.  He wasn't wearing a Ford tie.
  
Closer analogy would be Southwest Airlines has a co-marking deal with teleflora.  If one of the gate check in chicks gets sent some flowers on valentines day will their be an issue if it comes from 1-800-Flowers?  And 1-800-Flowers logo is being displayed at a southwest check in counter.  

Actually what I think what he did would be the equivalent of the guy in charge of inflight movies for southwest selecting for next month: Alive, Castaway, Final Destination and Raid on Entebbe.  Purposefully doing something to piss off the customers.  

[Sunstroke]

Actually what I think what he did would be the equivalent of the guy in charge of inflight movies for southwest selecting for next month: Alive, Castaway, Final Destination and Raid on Entebbe.  Purposefully doing something to piss off the customers.  

That would be AWESOME!!

I'd be a loyal Southwest customer for life if someone did that on a SW flight I was on.

[Brian Fein]

I GET  that they had a deal with the Bears.  I know that.  I don't care.  Working for a guy that has a deal with the Bears is not the same as working for the Bears.

I would bet that the dealership probably pays the Bears a big fee to be the "official car dealership of the Bears."  I don't think the Bears would care what tie one salesman wore.  I hope that the move was made because of sound business reasons, not because the manager is a Bears fan and was mad his team sucks and took the tie as "rubbing it in."

The fact that they offered him his job back makes me think it was the latter.

[Pappy13]

Everyone I have ever dealt with at your company not only as a dress code but a uniform.

Not sure why this matters, I'm sure the dealership has a dress code as well for their sales people.  The point that I was trying to make is that even WITHOUT a dress code, there are certain do's and don'ts that are still expected of employees.

The Bears are not a competitor to the dealership like AA is to you.  He wasn't wearing a Ford tie.

If the dealership has an agreement with the Bears for advertising their brand in some way, I don't see what the difference is.  The Bears ARE a competitor with the Packers and any agreement for advertising would surely be effected by that.

Closer analogy would be Southwest Airlines has a co-marking deal with teleflora.  If one of the gate check in chicks gets sent some flowers on valentines day will their be an issue if it comes from 1-800-Flowers?

Probably not, although I don't think it's the same thing.  The flowers were sent to her, not chosen to be worn by her.  If she decided to wear something that was advertising teleflora, absolutely it would be an issue.

And 1-800-Flowers logo is being displayed at a southwest check in counter. 

Absolutely.  Brand recognition is absolutely a huge issue for businesses and when you have a partnership with someone to advertise their products, you absolutely are obligated to not advertise competing products.  The Bears are a business.  The Packers are a competing business.

[Pappy13]

I would bet that the dealership probably pays the Bears a big fee to be the "official car dealership of the Bears."  I don't think the Bears would care what tie one salesman wore.  

I think you're wrong, but it really doesn't matter what the Bears think, it matters what the dealership owner thinks.  If HE thinks the Bears will care, then he certainly cares and that DOES matter.

The fact that they offered him his job back makes me think it was the latter.

Actually it sounds to me that the dealership (perhaps after consulting with a representative of the Bears) decided that the negative publicity around the whole thing was worse then having the guy wear a Packers tie and decided to try to bring him back.  I bet if did come back, he would still have to agree not to wear a Packers tie.

[Spider-Dan]

I have a question:

If the manager sees that his employee has a tie that he considers to be gaudy, unprofessional and/or otherwise in bad taste, is he wrong to ask said employee to remove it?  Should the employee be able to refuse to comply with that request?

Seriously, this isn't an issue of angry/bitter Bears fans... we don't even know that the manager IS a Bears fan.  This has to do with a manager seeing an employee's tie, deciding that said tie would be bad for business (at any level), asking him to remove it, and firing the employee when he refuses.

If I work in the same Chicago dealership and I decide to wear a tie that has a picture of Obama and says "Show me the birth certificate!", should the manager be allowed to tell me to take it off?  If I'm at a dealership in Alabama and I wear a tie that says "There is no god... get over it", can I then insist on my freedom of religion?

[Brian Fein]

Better stated, Spider -

What if you showed up to work wearing a tie that had a large naked woman on it?  Or perhaps swaztikas or pictures of KKK members.  I could see how that would be asked to be removed because they're OFFENSIVE.

What if he was wearing a tie of Oakland Raiders logos, or better yet, the Phoenix Coyotes or Minnesota Twins.  Would he have been asked to remove it?  How is this different?  What if he wore his GB Packers tie in July?  March?

The whole thing just sounds fishy, and I think you're over-simplifying it.

[StL FinFan]

I don't think it's been pointed out that Illinois is a no fault state.  You can be fired for any reason as long as it does not fall into discrimination.

[Brian Fein]

^^ That adds some clarity, but doesn't change my opinion much on this particular situation.   Florida is the same...

[badger6]

I don't think it's been pointed out that Illinois is a no fault state.  You can be fired for any reason as long as it does not fall into discrimination.

Legally, yes. But does that make it right ?

[StL FinFan]

It makes it dumb for someone to wear something that would knowingly piss off their boss.  I've said before there was probably bad blood between them before this.  Maybe he did it on purpose so he could get fired and collect unemployment, rather than quitting and not be able to collect.