Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2019/02/02/internalizing-risks.html
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I knew just reading the headline that financial firms would be at the top of the list. Most of these industries, in addition to being “star system” cultures, are notorious boy’s clubs even today.
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Damn asshats making all of us high billing rainmakers look bad
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I’ve been licensed to sell insurance for over a decade, and I’ve never heard of sexual harassment insurance. It’s possible to insure any crazy risk you can think up through Lloyd’s of London, but MeToo coverage would be a rarity at best. (Or worst.)
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I doubt they actually call it that, they probably have a range of polite euphemisms that cover such circumstances.
Just like surgeons have “malpractice” insurance, not “show up to work drunk and amputate the wrong limb” insurance.
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I’m wondering if
HOOTERS INC.
is included.
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And people wonder why someone would call private insurance companies scams?
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Per the article.
Seems like it would cover discrimination claims of any sort, wrongful termination claims. And assorted other EEOC, labor law, and HR issues.
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#notallhighbillingrainmakers!
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Not at all surprised to see law firms on the blacklist. Employment law firms, particularly, don’t recognize the liability they themselves create.
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This is the last thing my bespoke cloud-seeding service needs right now!
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No, not really.
Without insurance companies much of modern commerce would grind to a halt or simply not have started in the first place. Yes there are sleazy practices - especially in almost deliberately regulatorily rigged markets (e.g. US healthcare) and perhaps in markets where insurance is mandatory but perhaps regulations are not strict enough or enforced properly. But the vast majority of general insurance (P&C in the USA, also otherwise known as non-life) is voluntary, and without it most modern businesses would simply not be able to operate.
Mutual or co-operative models may be considered preferable and some state-managed schemes also have value. But private insurance companies are not scams, by any means; they offer effective risk management services without which we as consumers would be much worse off because prices would be higher and choice would be much restricted, to name just two likely effects. I am no shill for the industry - and have been a trenchant critic of many practices - but having worked with it over many years, it still irks that so many people fail to understand just how much it is THE oil that greases the wheels of so much of modern life. The development of insurance and the joint-stock company are probably the two things that underpin nearly all modern business, without which it would simply not exist in all its myriad manifestations.
/lecture
( I may have put it more succinctly here )
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Hmm, I would expect Republicans to make a change to sexual discrimination laws to say it is ok to discriminate in cases where not doing so would lead to not being covered by your insurer of choice.
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That’s quite forward an action. I would expect elected Republicans to sanction a company to charge with doing that, then end up with it being bought by one in charge of AOC Fan Club (not sanctioned by AOC.) Wait, I had a positive thought someplace…gonna finish listening to this ep. ofSceptic Tank.
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A rainmaker is the sort of person whose loss would be reflected in the company’s balance sheets. As a result, sexual harassment claims against “rainmakers” are not taken seriously.
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You’ve obviously not been told about Captive Insurance.
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I’ll admit, I’m curious how you do assessment for insurance like this.
Certainly if I was in the field, I’d ask for a 15 minute interview with (1) a pool of the lowest paid employees and (2) the assistants to the highest paid employees.
I’d love to know whether you could get reasonable estimates of risk (as proven by claims later on) from a minimal inspection of the workplace. My guess is yes, and I’d guess the lowest to the highest rates would vary by a factor of 50.
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Which means that not being able to get it is a considerably bigger problem that goes outside of liability for sexual harassment.
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A friend used to work for a car dealer, and they’re on the list for good reason. The salesmen are always “just kidding,” until one of the women says yes.
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