• The Center Square: Federal employees reportedly told to remove pronouns from email signatures.
  • arglebargle@lemm.ee
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    13 hours ago

    Well like any other employee, you can say whatever you like, but you might get fired for it.

    I don’t see how the first ammendment applies here.

    That said, I think this is a stupid and mean spirited order. It is by design trying to continue the exodus of federal employees while also the tyrannical denial of being able to identify people however they find appropriate for themselves.

    • JustARaccoon@lemmy.world
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      11 hours ago

      Well it’s not a private entity hiring them, it’s the actual govt. Usually the defense is that those are private companies and they can do what they want but that doesn’t apply here

      • arglebargle@lemm.ee
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        11 hours ago

        Yes it does apply here. Why would you think it would be different?

        There are always policies in government, just like anywhere else you have people working. Freedom of speech is not an excuse to break those policies.

    • Maggoty@lemmy.world
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      10 hours ago

      Because their employer is the US Government. The very entity the 1st Amendment protects us from.

      • arglebargle@lemm.ee
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        9 hours ago

        Not how this works at all. Do you really believe that an employee can just do or say anything while on the job just because they work for the US government?

        Lets take Email for example, because that is what we are talking about here. There are policies about structuring emails. An agency can say: Your name goes at the bottom of every email, followed by your position, and then the Logo of the Agency. If you choose to sign your emails with someone else’s name, from “This is such bullshit department” and a logo you made up, you WILL get disciplined.

        Your freedom of speech ends at the door. Outside of work feel free, not at work.

        • Maggoty@lemmy.world
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          9 hours ago

          Most of that isn’t political speech. You absolutely still have the right to political speech as a government employee. Even the military was forced to let soldiers have political speech. The dividing line is where it looks like the speech is from the government instead of from you. Personal pronouns are hardly going to be from the government.

          In your assertion the government could simply remove the rights of civil servants by issuing a policy. And that’s just not how rights work.