No more bald jokes, girls.
I’ll be the first to say that superficial comments and judgments about someone’s physical appearance are not cool. But to label bald jokes a form of sexual harassment? Seems a bit extreme.
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Apparently, the High Court thinks otherwise.
This whole lengthy case started back in 2019 when an electrician named Tony Finn accused his boss of sexual harassment. Allegedly, Finn’s boss at the British Bung Company had referred to him as a “stupid bald cunt.”
Maybe this is my American sensibilities, but I’m thinking maybe the C-word is more of an issue here—but I digress.
According to the panel of judges, led by Judge Jonathan Brain, the term “bald” is “inherently related to gender,” so using it against a man could breach equality laws. In other words, “bald” is a sexist insult.
The three-person panel also stated that the remark “crossed a line” and there is “a connection between the word ‘bald’ and the protected characteristic of sex.”
According to The Telegraph, the panel consisted of three bald men.
“[Baldness] is much more prevalent in men than women,” they said. (K, well, tell that to the PCOS community.)
Now, according to The Sun, the full judgment made at the Employment Appeals Tribunal has finally been published—four years after the initial comments against Finn. The electrician will likely receive compensation for the alleged sexual harassment.
As expected, this case is gaining major traction on social media, with many users expressing their disbelief over the ruling.
“This is silly,” one person wrote. “We should all strive to be better people and to be more understanding and supportive with those who are missing something. But it seems silly to waste the court’s time with things so small.”
Most others labeled the notion as nonsense.
However, one person posed a different perspective: “I think it’s a bit extreme, but I can see the precedent. If people cannot joke about something a woman cannot control, then why should they be able to joke about something a man cannot control?”
Shrugs.
