Every company has rules about how its employees can behave and what they can or cannot do. If anybody crosses a line, it often means strict action will be taken against them. The only thing is that there are a few cases where it’s hard to judge if the worker truly did something wrong.
This is what a man faced after calling his organization’s AI chatbot a “clanker.” He was saying it in a humorous way and trying to point out its problem areas, but this behavior was perceived negatively by his boss, who called him in for a talk.
More info: Reddit
Nobody wants to do anything to put their job at risk, but sometimes people might accidentally do things that jeopardize their future at work
Image credits: MART PRODUCTION / Pexels (not the actual photo)
The poster had been working in the same company for three years, and his organization had recently launched an Artificial Intelligence chatbot
Image credits: Matheus Bertelli / Pexels (not the actual photo)
The AI tool had received mixed reviews, and the poster kept pointing out its problems while also calling it a “clanker,” which, according to memes, is a robotic slur
Image credits: Timur Weber / Pexels (not the actual photo)
The Human Resources department reached out to understand why the poster was using that term to insult their tool, so he shared some memes as context
Image credits: ChemicalAnxiety5782
Eventually, the man was pencilled in for a disciplinary meeting with his manager and the head of HR, so he felt confused and unsure of what to do
The poster had been doing well in his company and had worked with them for the last three years. During that time, it didn’t seem like he was making waves or doing anything wrong, so to suddenly receive a disciplinary notice out of the blue was quite shocking. He wasn’t told exactly what to expect during the meeting or why it was being called.
According to experts, when the company wants to investigate an employee’s behavior or discuss a problem, they might schedule a disciplinary meeting with them. Before the meeting, the managerial team must put in writing the issue that they want to discuss and any other evidence pertaining to the investigation.
The man’s organization didn’t give him any clue as to what matter they wanted to take up in the disciplinary meeting. He felt that it was due to the fact that he had insulted their AI chatbot, and the only reason he had that feeling was because a person from Human Resources had asked him about the meaning behind the slur.
The word “clanker” actually comes from the Star Wars universe and has been used several times in the series to refer to robots and the sound they make. In modern times, people have been taking out their resentment and fear about AI by calling it this slur. Although the term is being used against non-sentient creations, it might come across as derogatory to some.
Image credits: Curated Lifestyle / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
The poster never realized that by insulting his company’s chatbot, he was doing anything wrong. It was only when the head of Human Resources sent him a message and scheduled the meeting with his manager that he began to panic about the situation. It could mean that he would lose his job.
The man shared his experience online, hoping that someone would advise him on what action he could take or how he could protect himself. He was also told by the HR head that he could have a union representative join in on the meeting with him. Apart from that, he wasn’t sure how to handle the situation.
Employees are given the choice to have someone accompany them to a disciplinary meeting to defend their case, share a different perspective, or even advise them. Apart from the union representative, workers can also ask a colleague or manager to join them in the meeting if they feel the person can add value to the discussion.
It’s definitely an odd situation for the poster to be in because he could never have imagined that using a meme slur against his company’s chatbot would get him into trouble. Hopefully, he can get out of this situation with just a warning and not have his job at stake over an issue like this.
Do you think the man was out of line for calling the AI bot a clanker? Let us know what you think.
People advised the man to ask his union representative to accompany him, and felt that his boss was doing this only because his actions had affected company morale
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