I was kind of hoping it wold be more about a god butt than a button...not gonna lie.

yeah i was pretty interested in finding out what a god butt was too, not gonna lie =)

lol I got a giggle out of that before I read it!

When I worked retail, we were told flat out we weren't allowed to wear non-company approved buttons/pins/stickers/etc. on our vests or clothes.
If they let one person wear a button that wasn't company approved, they'd have to let everyone.

It's like a guy wearing a 'Legalize Marijuana' button. Yes, it's his first amendment right to wear that button.
But it's also in the company's best interests to ask them to remove it.

His button may have upset someone. There are a lot of people who believe "One Nation Under God" shouldn't be in the pledge or on money.
If someone complains, the company is supposed to do something about it.

-shrug-

"The issue is not whether or not we agree with the message on the button"

Then why wasn't he asked to remove the button when he first started wearing it over a year ago? I'm sure he was violating the dress code back then too, so someone should have said something to him when he first started doing it . One of his co-workers probably complained about it so much that the company finally decided to do something about it.

I hope he wins his lawsuit against Home Depot. This country has to great of a push to remove God from our daily lives. And frankly, I'd like to see the courts uphold a person's right to free speech and free religious expression in the work place.

So if I were to wear a button to work that said "Satan is my homeboy", Applebee's would have to respect it? Would they have any right to ask me to remove it, regardless of whether or not people were offended?
If he were wearing the button outside of work, then Home Depot has no right to do or say anything. But when he was hired, he probably had to sign a few documents saying what he could and couldn't do as an employee of Home Depot, and uniform/dress code was most likely addressed. I know it is at every place I've worked.
Yes, someone should have said something when he started wearing the button, but if someone only recently complained, or if management only recently noticed (managers don't always notice little things), then I can understand why it was only just brought up.
This country has to great of a push to remove God from our daily lives. The United States is not a theocracy, therefore our government has no right to place the Christian God in our lives. While I do understand the need for religious freedom, and I completely support your right to worship your God in the way you see fit, I don't think that the government has any business pushing any religion on me, in any way.
Home Depot's timing was off, they should have said something when it started, but he doesn't deserve to win this lawsuit.

i think with their timing being off is why they will probably lose the lawsuit

But, it's a quote straight from our nation's pledge to the American Flag... Not just some religious button or statement.

It doesn't matter. It could be a quote straight from the Constitution, if it's not included in the Home Depot dress code, it shouldn't be worn. Plain and simple.

He does have a right to free speech AND religious expression. They're not taking away his freedoms.

Hey, listen, I know this is going to be a big shock to you, but did you know that there are other news channels out there beyond FOX News? That have more accurate information and less of an agenda to push? I think you would like to try them out sometime! I know it's scary to step outside your bubble, but you can do it!

I'm a firm believer and I agree with H.D. It would be nice if we were all able to wear things like that, if we wanted to, but I agree with Oprah Noodlemantra. If I am able to wear something that shows I believe in God, someone else may be able to wear something that says something about budda or satan. While God may not be offensive to you, He may be to other people. If the company has a strick dress code, he should have abided by it. BUT they should have said something to him sooner. I am certain that managers and other staff saw the button long before he was fired - that the Bible was the last straw. I don't believe he should have been punished for that, and I really do believe that that played a part in it.

When I worked at New Haven Pet Hospital here in town, I couldn't show a tattoo that says "Morst" (long story short, it means I love you) because we had quite a few older clients and the Dr. didn't want them to be offended. Since it is on the top of my wrist, I covered it with a bandaid. I didn't like it, but it was policy. So I covered it, without complaint. The vet I work at now has no problems with it showing and I get asked about it quite a bit, with clients loving the story behind it. Each place is different. Abide by their rules, and your job should be safe.

Believe in God if that is what your heart is telling you to do. Believe in Satan if you want. Heck...believe in the one eyed, one horned, flying purple eater if you want to. But if your work place doesn't allow it in their dress code, simply don't do it. It isn't a hard thing to follow and if you don't follow it, then be prepared to look for another job. It's simple.

The problem is simple...There's simply too many thin skinned, politically correct people.

People need to grow a freaking set, stop being offended by every little thing, and just live life.

Bottom line, If I go into Home Depot, I don't give a crap if someone is wearing a God Shirt or a Satan shirt...it's none of my damn business. Just know your freaking job and get me my stupid supplies.

This.

Or you could read that as "people should stop being so thin-skinned and politically argumentative. This is not a political issue, this is a corporate issue. Do as their company policies ask of them, or don't take/keep the job. Deal with the fact that the company you work for has a dress code, abide by it, and get my freaking supplies. Instead of purposefully opposing it when it was brought to your attention, regardless of how long it took for them to notice. Corporations are not the most "on the ball" things when it comes to details like enforcing dress codes sometimes. But when they did finally notice, consider yourself lucky that you got away with breaking a rule for as long as you did, get the heck over it and remove the damn pin."
Part of knowing your job is knowing what is required of you at your job. If your job has a dress code, that is what is required of you. And clearly he didn't "know" /accept that.

If employees were allowed to wear non-company buttons, then he'd have had every right to wear it.

But the fact is they had a uniform code which said NO non-company buttons. This isn't about having the right to expres one's beliefs... if a company has a dress code, you stick to it, or you put yourself at risk of losing your job. The company were perfectly entitled to enforce their dress code, and what was actually on the button is irrelavant. He'll never win this, as the dress code will have been clearly stated in his contract.

If Home Depot has a problem with the button, and it is their company policy, then they do have the right to have the person remove the button. Obviously he should've been asked to remove the button several times before being fired, and he may have been. But they should have said something about it a year ago. You can't allow someone to do something for a year, knowing that they're violating company policy, and then all of a sudden start enforcing that policy. If they were not enforcing the policy before, then it's not ethically right for them to suddenly start enforcing it out of the blue after you've allowed them to do it for so long, and then fire them for violating a policy that you allowed knowingly and willingly allowed them to violate for a year. It may not be illegal, but many things that are not right are still legal.... And some things are illegal that should not be illegal.

I think what some people don't understand is that.. yes in America we have these freedoms.. HOWEVER. in a work place.. no matter where you work.. If someone is offended by what you where.. whether it be: jewelry or clothes or even "buttons".. People don't have to go straight to the person they are getting offended by.. they can go to the direct manager and say "hey, i don't like what this person is wearing"..

Maybe a year ago there was no one there that was offended.. maybe someone new got hired and got offended and said to their supervisior.. I don't like the pin they are wearing, it's offending..

In my work, we have many people of different cultures.. We don't even celebrate christmas/yule, halloween or whatever because of 1 person.. why? because they have to be considerate of those people who don't celeberate and who don't believe it..

There's a girl at my work whose a wiccan.. everyone knows it but she doesn't rub it in everyones faces.. she doesn't have a pin on her clothes saying "i'm a witch".. or whatever.. What she DOES have is a necklace.. everyone thinks it's cool.. when they ask she just says "it's cool". cause she doesn't want to offend anyone..

So with that said.. More than likely the guy won't win.. Even the court rooms have dress codes and everyone has to be considerate of others beliefs..

so a reply to the chick about "satan is my homeboy" if you wore and someone got offended and told their super or yours.. then yes they would ask you to remove it, but IF NO ONE ASKS.. they can't touch you.

Actually, I believe Home Depot does have the right to not enforce the rule. like many have suggested, someone could have complained or they might have gotten a new manager (people always obey all the rules when they first get hired :P) and they had to enforce it. it clearly states that they ask him to remove it, and he refused. he wasn't outright fired...they asked and he refused to he got fired. If no one at Home Depot didn't mind the pin, they let it slide and decided not to enforce it, and they have every right to do that. it says in his contract that they have a dress code and when and where they choose to enforce it is up to their discrepancy. he shouldn't win, bottom line. this isn't anything having to do with religion. i love how if it says God in the post, people try and make it about religion. -chuckles-