The CEO of a recruitment firm has spoken out after a video of him went viral offering employees advice on how to do drugs and cheat on their partners.
The festive season is the season of giving after all and one CEO decided to impart some rather controversial wisdom on employees ahead of their 2024 Christmas bash.
Alas, CEO of recruiting firm Sharp and Carter, Stephen Carter, didn't quite realize a video of him giving the rousing speech would end up being 'sent externally' - and not just externally, but end up widespread across the internet.
The video
According to the recruitment agency's site, 'outside of work' Carter 'enjoys spending time with his wife and three children, playing golf, basketball, cycling with his friends and generally fitting in as much exercise as his old creaking bones will handle,' and it would appear he also likes some more x-rated activities too.
A video from the company's Christmas meeting ahead of the celebrations getting underway sees Carter saying he 'take[s] drugs' but just doesn't do them at work events.
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Why? Well, not because it's wrong to take drugs in the first place, oh no, but 'because that's when things get really out of hand'.
He warned 203 baffled employees, some of who tuned into the speech over Zoom: "If you take drugs at the Christmas party you will be fired. It’s a really strong rule."
And the advice didn't stop there either, Carter leaving no taboo topic uncovered, swiftly moves onto the topic of cheating and his 'recommend[ations]' when it comes to doing it too.
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He continued: "If you want to cheat on your partner, I would recommend 2024 has been a stark reminder it is probably not wise to cheat on your partner with someone at work.
"If you are going to cheat on your partner and if you have to do it – just don’t do it with someone at work it really becomes problematic as we have seen."
He added if any employee is single, then work is a great place to meet someone, many employees having allegedly found their significant other through the company.
The video of Carter's speech found its way onto the world wide web and - unsurprisingly - didn't take long to go viral, the CEO since reflecting on his choice of words and arguing he doesn't actually do drugs right now.
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Carter's reaction
He told The Herald Sun: "Obviously I didn’t expect it to get sent externally. I probably would have chosen to use my words a bit differently if I knew that."
However, that's not to say Carter doesn't stand by what he said, arguing it's 'obvious' what his 'intention' was with the speech - 'to look after and care for my people so they don't do damage to themselves and others'.
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The CEO says he's simply 'trying to get ahead' of people taking drugs and cheating by warning it shouldn't happen anywhere near work.
He doesn't have 'any philosophical objection to drugs', but notes 'the workplace isn’t the spot for them'. He simply wanted to inform employees they can go and do them in a social setting whenever 'for all [he] care[s]' but he doesn't want it tied to the workplace.
And whether or not he still partakes?
Well, Carter claims he simply changed it to the 'present tense' to avoid being teased. The CEO resolves: "I haven’t done drugs for about five years and it is not like I am doing drugs."
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A representative for Carter shared the following statement with UNILAD: "The snippet circulating online is just a 20-second curated clip from a much longer 15-minute speech I gave, and it really doesn’t reflect the full message I wanted to share.
"My goal in that speech was simple: to encourage everyone to make good choices at the Christmas Party that align with our values and to avoid doing anything that might harm themselves, others, or be career limiting.
"This comes directly from our culture of care and looking out for one another. You can read more about this on our website."
Topics: Australia, Drugs, Health, Social Media, Viral, Sex and Relationships
Poppy Bilderbeck