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Suspended for porn: Is George Greanias' METRO punishment too harsh or toolenient?
George GreaniasPhoto via Ride Metro
George Greanias
When it comes to having sex and having a job, it's probably best to keep to two as far apart as possible. Just ask Eliot Spitzer. Or Clarence Thomas. Or Bill Clinton. Or METRO CEO George Greanias, who was suspended without pay for one week on Thursday for accessing "adult content" on his personal computer through METRO's Wi-Fi Internet system.
According to METRO's official statement,
METRO's investigation revealed that while on his personal computer, Mr. Greanias accessed more than one dozen adult oriented sites of a sexual nature through the METRO Internet System. The access violations occurred on 14 days from February 9, 2011 to July 1, 2011. Normally, the disciplinary action for such a violation is a verbal reprimand. Any subsequent violation could lead to more severe punishment, including termination. METRO Chairman Gilbert Garcia has concluded that, as president and CEO, Mr. Greanias must be held to a higher standard, and decided instead of a warning Mr. Greanias would receive a more stringent punishment of one week suspension, without pay.
The report does not outline whether Greanias looked at the sites during work hours or on his own time, though Garcia confirmed in a press conference Thursday afternoon that Greanias was at the METRO premises when the violations occurred. If he was looking at sex sites instead of working, the punishment seems appropriate — maybe even lenient.
But if Greanias, who has made large strides in improving METRO's fortunes, was surfing on his own time, on his own computer, I have mixed feelings over whether the use of Wi-Fi equals an abuse of company resources. Would it be equally problematic if he was receiving adult materials via mail, like a former boss of mine who had his Playboy subscription sent to the office? Where do we draw the line?
The bigger question might be potential extracurricular activities suggested by the sites Greanais visited. According to a list published by Houston Press, some were indeed porn (hardcoregaysexxx.com, sharethatboy.com), but several others — maximumescorts.com, hourboy.com, daddysreviews.com and the infamous rentboy.com — are sites for hiring gay prostitutes.
METRO spokesman Jerome Gray said that the discovery occurred during a monthly monitoring of computers accessed by the agency's employees. An investigation by the agency's IT department indicates that no transactions were made on the sites that Greanias accessed. "There were no signs of any criminal activity warranted to take the investigation to the next level," Gray said.
Garcia says that Greanias "has my full support," and that the METRO board of directors "stands behind him." Greanias is expected to return to work on Aug. 8.
Do you think that Greanias did anything wrong? Is the punishment appropriate?
