Today, while I was eating soup for lunch, Howard returned to his favourite subject of rape.
“Eva’s going to spend the weekend walking down badly lit alleys hoping to meet a rapist.”
Howard recommended I try around pub closing hours. He asked a female colleague to agree that I had the look of a girl asking to be raped. When she appealed to the Office Manager on my behalf, she replied, with a mouthful of sandwich and a helpless shrug, that it was his favourite subject when it came to me. I try to ignore it.
Howard continued, “She probably wears a badge saying, “I’m an estate agent” or “Has anyone seen Mr Kipper?””
I didn’t understand. He reminded me of the murder of Suzy Lamplugh. He said he had an alibi. He’d only been 14 and had been on holiday at the time.
I couldn’t help wondering why anybody other than the police would be so knowledgeable about Suzy Lamplugh. He told me she’d disappeared in July 1986 and was later found dead. Her skull had been relentlessly beaten in with a brick - shattered like eggshell.
“I’ll say one thing,” the Office Manager said when lunch was over, “He gives me a headache the way he goes on.”
A headache is the least of my worries. He’s always pretending to stove my head in with a brick.
Half an hour later I think he realised he’d gone too far. He sent me an e-mail saying he was just joking – it was just the way he was. Joking or not, my hands were shaking and my stomach was in knots. The e-mail went on to say that I’d soon be moving desks to sit closer to him and that I was going to be given a small pay rise.
Forty five minutes later another e-mail arrived. It was entitled “Sexual Offences Rape” and detailed how the law had changed. He commented that oral activities are now classed as rape by a 2004 amendment and he’d been unaware of this fact. Later he e-mailed me on the same topic to say, “There is no excuse for not acquiring knowledge.”
I need to get out!
Eva x
3 comments:
What a tosser! The sooner you can leave that appalling place, the better. Management should not be putting up with that sort of behaviour. You have every right to complain formally to your line manager (or your line manager's line manager) and give a deadline for getting the behaviour stopped. What's the worst that can happen? You certainly can't be sacked for it!
I don't understand why you don't lay down the law on these dingbats. If you want them to respect you you will have to show you respect your self - and that means not allowing them to talk to you in this way. I simple 'this topic is making me feel uncomfortable and is inappropriate in the workplace' should do the trick.
No, not as easy as that when they can turn the tables on you and lie and make you seem like the criminal.
My daughter s bully would trip her up..rip her hair out of its bobble and draw on her..when she sensed any retaliation it was..oh..but you know I love you really..
yeah so thats ok then! Her ingenuity increases with time..the gang were briefed of her story when a complaint was made to the police of assault! where will it end?
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