Author says colorful words create more stress at work

You know Sarge from the Beetle Bailey comic strip? Beetle's hot-tempered "boss'' peppers many of his conversations with $&%#&$, or sometimes the good old $&%#& and the ever-popular ?%$&$!

Does that sound like your boss? Or perhaps even you?

As workdays grow longer and workplaces grow more casual, so, it seems, grows workplace cussing. Sure, it may have been around for a while, but many see it as much more prominent today. And with that comes some workplace problems.

Many workers admit to throwing a few swear words around here and there. But those few words can cause much-larger issues in some cases. First of all, you never know whom you are offending, even if you're simply cursing at your computer.

James V. O'Connor, author of the book "Cuss Control: The Complete Book on How to Curb Your Cursing'' (Three Rivers Press, $12.95), stated the "cursing in the workplace'' issue rather succinctly: "It just adds a little extra tension. They think they're venting, but it actually causes more stress.''

O'Connor first began his stop-the-swearing mission about six years ago. He became tired of hearing all the swearing in public, and he realized all the words that disturbed him were words he used himself. He found the bad-language habit a tough one to break and started doing some research. Then he wrote the book and began speaking to groups about the subtle dangers of cursing.

A few people have benefited from listening to O'Connor's (curse-free) talks. John R. Wagner, founder of the Chicago-based Wagner Group advertising agency, realized that his "loose'' creative workplace was also one of constant swearing.

"There was more cussing going on here than at a law firm or a newspaper,'' he said. "Sometimes temperamental, creative people are outspoken. And sometimes it becomes a task to deal with that environment.''

The right impression

Wagner's company doesn't have any no-swearing rules, but it does try to control the bad-mouth bantering. "We're not a real conservative bunch by any means,'' he said. "But it just affects the environment, particularly with clients. You want to make sure you're creating the right impression.''

The Wagner Group learned from O'Connor that there are good alternative words for the four-letter ones. They also learned to think about speaking as if on national television. The reason? There are certain words that can't be said on the air. If everyone takes that as a standard, they learn self-control.

So, what's the big deal?

A lot of the swearing we do is "expressing negativity -- complaining, criticizing, grumbling,'' O'Connor said from his office near Chicago. "Not showing a spirit of cooperation and a can-do attitude employers look for doesn't help your career.''

And ultimately, he said, swearing in the workplace can result in legal issues. "Cases of sexual harassment and violence never talk about the swearing. But violence begins with them fightin' words," O'Connor said.

In the case of Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Ball-Foster Glass Container Co., a Wisconsin court said a company's failure to stop a female employee from harassing other female workers constituted sexual harassment. The woman's use of sex-based epithets to other employees, her unwelcome and threatening physical motions, and her sexually derogatory comments created a hostile work environment, the court held.

The company tried to argue that the language was simply shoptalk, which it said it does not monitor. But Sandra Radtke, the employment and labor lawyer on the accuser's side, argued that the language was much more intimidating than simple workplace cursing.

Radtke won the case, but the situation shows the ambiguity, and possible danger for a company, of deciding how much swearing is too much or what sort of cursing is considered to be harassment.

'Embarrassed for them'

A 55-year-old woman who works at an agency on Capitol Hill has a hard time dealing with the day-to-day life in her office because of her co-workers' language.

She finds a direct correlation between the amount of bad language the men in her office use and their attitudes toward women. No, she said, no man in her office has ever sworn at her, but just the same, it's painful to be privy to the bantering. The women in her office don't curse as much as the men do, and that seems to separate the sexes even more.

"I really do cringe,'' she said. "Sometimes they can get pretty rank. I'm not only embarrassed for myself, I'm embarrassed for them. If they only knew how they look.''

Carl Jaskolski is a convert. A few years ago, he supervised five people. They knew they swore, and really, they knew it wasn't a good thing. So they set up a swear jar.

Each curse word uttered would result in a quarter in the jar. They soon found their pockets empty, and they realized just how much time they spent using curse words.

But it wasn't until Jaskolski heard a preacher years later that it hit him: Those words were not necessary to get a point across. The preacher made his point without turning the air blue, so why couldn't others, Jaskolski wondered?

Jaskolski now teaches a workplace-language course at Milwaukee Area Technical College, as well as human-resources and labor law at Concordia University Wisconsin. In his research, Jaskolski has tracked court cases that involve language in the workplace. Employers are often found liable for not dealing with a person who was abusive with language.

Which may be why a language code he drafted in late 2000, much like a dress code, is starting to catch on among U.S. companies.

He has received more than 120 requests for the policy.