US workers told to watch their language

Companies are creating so-called codes of ethics on language in a bid to prevent almost certain litigation if they do not.

The movement has high-profile backing - TV chat show hostess Oprah Winfrey has pledged to stop swearing, while a survey found 89% of people disliked the fact that they swore.

But another survey found that that did not stop them swearing in front of their workmates, especially at the US Postal Service, where 43% of workers said they had been sworn at by colleagues.

Companies are drawing up codes in the belief that, if they do not, people who object to hearing swear words will sue their employers for creating an environment where profanities and expletives can be heard.

The fear comes after firms have been sued for damages running into millions of dollars for failing to prevent sexual harassment and lawyers have claimed it would be possible to sue for damages based on them failing to prevent swearing.

Policies typically want employees not to use ‘‘inappropriate’’ language, which is defined as ‘‘unwanted, deliberate, repeated, unsolicited profanity, cussing (corr), swearing, vulgar, insulting, abusive or crude language’’.

Penalties for breaching the policies range from warning and counselling to being sacked, depending on how long the language has been used for and its severity.

Courts have backed the sacking of people who swear repeatedly - even if they have Tourette’s Syndrome, which can cause uncontrollable swearing.

Last year a supermarket bag-packer in Michigan lost a bid to sue his employer for wrongful dismissal after he was sacked for swearing at customers, despite having Tourette’s Syndrome.

‘‘If you have an employee using these words in the workplace, even though it is caused by an illness, the employer has every right to fire them,’’ Michael Cutler, the lawyer for the supermarket chain, told the Wall Street Journal.

A company has even been set up to offer employers help in cleaning up their workers’ speech. The Cuss Control Academy offers training courses to prevent and control swearing in the workplace.

Its president, James O’Connor, charges up to 3,000 dollars (£2,000) for training and presentations to some of America’s biggest firms.

‘‘Swearing can be rude, crude and offensive,’’ he said. ‘‘It can reflect a bad attitude that hurts your image and your relationships. It doesn’t demonstrate respect for others, help you win arguments, set a positive example, get you romantically connected, or help you get hired or promoted.’’

His courses include easily remembered alternatives to commonly-used expletives, such as shoot, bunk and nuts.

‘‘They might not give you satisfaction at first, but they will eventually,’’ his website warns.

And he offers a simple tip for success in freeing workplaces of swearing:

‘Pretend that your sweet little grandmother or your young daughter is always next to you.’’