Asklemmy

43970 readers

994 users here now

A loosely moderated place to ask open-ended questions

Search asklemmy 🔍

If your post meets the following criteria, it's welcome here!

Open-ended question
Not offensive: at this point, we do not have the bandwidth to moderate overtly political discussions. Assume best intent and be excellent to each other.
Not regarding using or support for Lemmy: context, see the list of support communities and tools for finding communities below
Not ad nauseam inducing: please make sure it is a question that would be new to most members
An actual topic of discussion

Looking for support?

Looking for a community?

Lemmyverse: community search
sub.rehab: maps old subreddits to fediverse options, marks official as such
[email protected]: a community for finding communities

~Icon~ ~by~ ~@Double_[email protected]~

founded 5 years ago

MODERATORS

[email protected]

385

My wife, newly hired, was asked to un-blur her camera during a routine meeting to confirm her I9 information. This seems like a violation to me? (lemmy.world)

submitted 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

126 comments fedilink hide all child comments

She had interviewed and met both remotely and in person, this guy was merely an HR drone confirming her documentation. I was a little bent when she told me he had asked her to remove her blur filter "to have a look at her working environment, make sure it's not cluttered" (something along those lines). No one else at this company requested such. Was he way out of line?

I should note, this is my PC in our living room and not where she will be working from. And this guy wants a look around our home?! Told my wife to bring this up once she's settled in, ask HR if this is policy. She started today!

She thinks it's a racism thing. I'm not so sure, but I don't have any other explanation.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[–] [email protected] 223 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Uh, I hire a lot of remote people, and have been remote for a long time. That is absolutely not fucking normal. I'm not going to say racism/poor/or anything, but I will say asshole behavior and huge red flag.

[–] [email protected] 93 points 3 months ago (3 children)

I've been remote the past 5 years as well. I've never heard of anyone, anywhere, for any reason being asked to un-blur video. Customers, vendors, coworkers, everyone does it. In fact, I consider it more professional, and certainly less distracting to do so unless you background is 100% work dedicated. Hence my post.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 3 months ago (1 children)

okay but consider that you don't have as much surveilance of your employees, and without that, how are you supposed to discipline them?

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Just checking, youre being sarcastic right?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago

I was riffing on the original and translated titles of foucault's most well known work. whether it was sarcasm or not; 🤷‍♀️

[–] [email protected] 6 points 3 months ago

I agree! I brought this up with my team and they all laughed at it, and brought up too that "Wouldn't it look more professional having it on?"

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Even in a 100% work dedicated office, there is no background that looks as professional and uncluttered as a blurred one.

I only unblur if I'm showing off my bookshelf or video game posters

[–] [email protected] 6 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I only leave my stuff unblurred cuz my cats like to be on cam.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 months ago

My cat will get in front of me on camera, so blurring wouldn't even do anything