Striking a healthy work-life balance has been a challenge for employers and employees ever sine the first shingle was hung over a storefront.
COVID gave many in the fast-paced business world a reprieve from the relentless grind with full-time work-from-home options. Some folks grumbled when that offer receded to part-time and was then rescinded altogether.
For one high-profile CEO, no sacrifice is too great. He went so far as to praise a worker for selling a furry family member in exchange for the continued privilege of putting his nose to the grindstone.
Clearlink CEO, James Clarke, was blasted on social media last week for praising a company employee who sold the family dog in order to honor a return-to-office mandate. The comments were made during a company town hall meeting, the video of which was leaked.
“I've sacrificed and those of you here are have sacrificed greatly to be here as well," Clarke said in the video. He lauded news shared by one of his “leaders” that a fellow employee “went out and sold their family dog” to demonstrate his loyalty to the company.
“That breaks my heart as someone who has been at the head of the humanization of pets business and other businesses we have built. But, truly, those are the sacrifices that are being made and I honor you for those sacrifices,” he said. Clarke’s LinkedIn profile lists his service as a board member and chair of pet health provider PetIQ from 2011-2016.
In the nearly four-minute statement intended to rally employees, Clarke also spoke disparagingly of working mothers: “Generally this path is neither fair to your employer nor fair to those children,” he says. “That is not a criticism of the noble nature of motherhood, but there are only so many working hours in the day.” Additionally, he intimated that remote workers were lazy and disloyal: “Some of our developers could be working for two different companies — we don't know,” Clarke said.
Vice News broke this story. Reaction was swift and pointed. “Insane,” “an HR nightmare” and “unhinged” are but a few of the editorials featured across the social media spectrum. Moreover, Clarke’s comments directly contradict the company’s values espoused on its website. These include a “generous paid-time-off policy” and adherence to the “Parity Pledge to help us move toward gender and racial parity.”
The Salt-Lake City-based digital marketing company has not responded to requests for comment.
Some executives talk out of both sides of their mouths. And, at least one employee lacked the guts to take a stand for their family.