1457 Sparrow v. Local Union 1250

Even after being counseled about the Company’s “Zero Tolerance” Policy, Sparrow commenced a series of offensive and aggressive gestures in August 2000, clearly intended to annoy and threaten his co-worker Lois Bergenstein. Both the words and the gestures were highly offensive, and the sort that could create a hostile working environment for any reasonable person. No one would interpret what Sparrow did as shop talk and banter. This is precisely the kind of behavior which the Company’s “Zero Tolerance of Harassment and Discrimination” Policy is intended to address. Since Sparrow had already been counseled and disciplined for a serious infraction under the Policy, the Company’s decision to terminate him in August 2000 was not inconsistent with its contractual obligations.