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29.7.2000 Security: Fired after exchanging pornographic mail
An investigation by The Dow Chemical Co. of employee e-mail found that people at all levels of the plastics and chemicals manufacturer had sent pornography and violent images from company computers, leading to the firing of 50 workers and the disciplining of 200 others.

French Licencié après avoir échangé des mails pornographiques
Une enquête par Dow Chemical Co. de la messagerie de leurs employés a trouvé que les collaborateurs à tous les niveaux de l'entreprise de plastique et de chimie ont envoyé des images de violence et de pornographie depuisles ordinateurs de l'entreprise, cela a abouti au licenciement de 50 employés et des mesures disciplinaires à l'encontre de 200 autres.

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Eric Grates, spokesman for Dow's Michigan Operations said ``There was a whole range of things, from mild pornography to very graphic pornography and some seriously violent images.''

He further added that after an employee complaint in May an investigation by the nation's No. 2 chemical company was started The Midland, Mich.-based company does not monitor e-mail on a regular basis.

Then it was determined that more than one employee was involved. The company decided to look at all e-mail use during one week in May, to get a ``snapshot.''

Each employee was interviewed before taking action. Those who simply opened e-mails and deleted them were not further in trouble.

The problem was those who downloaded, saved and distributed objectionable subject matter.

After Dow finished its audit in early June, a review board determined the punishment, which could range from reprimands to suspension or firing.

Résumé en français

Le porte parole de Dow Eric Gates a dit: Il y avait beaucoup de choses, des images de pornographie et de violence.

C'est à la suite d'une plainte d'un employé que Dow a démarré une enquête au mois de mai. Cette entreprise ne surveille pas en permanence les messages envoyés et reçus par ses collaborateurs.

En effectuant une surveillance sur une semaine il a été découvert que plus d'un employé a été impliqué. Lors d'un entretien avec chaque personne implquée, le rôle de chacun a été déterminé. Ceux qui n'ont fait que recevoir les messages et les ont ensuite mis à la poubelle n'ont pas été inquiétés.

Le vrai problème vient de ceux qui téléchargent et distribuent ce type de contenu.

C'est une comission interne qui a revu les cas et a pris des sanctions.

Le licenciement de collaborateurs qui accèdent à du matériel pornographique sur les équipements d'une entreprise n'est pas limité à cette entreprise, d'autres situations similaires existent chez le célèbre New York Times et aussi Xerox parmis d'autres.

Firing employees for accessing pornographic Web sites and distributing offensive e-mail messages is not confined to Dow Chemical. The New York Times fired 22 employees in Virginia last year for passing around potentially offensive e-mails. Also last year, Xerox Corp. fired 40 workers for spending work time -- in some cases up to eight hours a day -- surfing pornographic and shopping sites on the Web.

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This story is illustrated by the cover of a book from which we extracted the following citations:

DID YOU KNOW?

Frogs do it longer than almost all other creatures, the males hanging on sometimes for many days or even weeks. The female frog, however, should not be deluded into feeling flattered, as the male frog, if removed from his mount and placed on some inanimate object, will carry on fulfilling his passions regardless.

What is ADONIS

ADONIS
The youth with whom Venus fell in love after accidentally pricking herself with one of her son cupid's arrows.
The word adonize means to make a man beautiful. The Kama Sutra advises a man who wants to make himself lovely in the eyes of his woman to anoint his penis with 'a mixture of the powders of the white thorn, the long pepper, the black pepper, and honey' before engaging in, presumably very hot, sexual union.

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Revised: juillet 29, 2000 .

All information provided is of a general nature and is not intended to address the circumstances of any particular individual or entity. Although we endeavor to provide accurate and timely information, there can be no guarantee that such information is accurate as of the date it is received or that it will continue to be accurate in the future. No one should act upon such information without appropriate professional advice after a thorough examination of the facts of the particular situation.