There are certain cases where the things people post on social media warrant them getting fired. I’m just not sure this is one of those instances: Florida man Ryan Uhler says he was fired from his job as a digital marketing special because he joked he wants to marry his dog.
In a post the day after the Supreme Court’s ruling on gay marriage, Uhler said, “How is marrying a dog different if you love them? Today I hope we can focus on doggy-style love. I love my dog Rocco, and he loves me. Hopefully one day we can be married.”
He told The Huffington Post that his bosses at Grace Investment Group then fired him because they said co-workers “were uncomfortable with the connotations of bestiality.”
“I was blindsided,” said Uhler, who is actually married. “I didn’t think anyone there knew how to use Facebook.”
He explained it wasn’t even a serious protest of the Supreme Court ruling. He added, “I’m very neutral about politics. Sometimes, I will try and get a reaction to spark comments and responses. I really didn’t want to offend.”
Although Uhler accused his former employer of never telling him their social media policies, trial lawyer Scot Goldberg told WZVN the company was within their rights — even if it overreacted a bit.
“I think going to the point where they’re firing someone is a little bit over the line,” he said, explaining Florida is an “at will” state, which means employers don’t have to explain firings. “I think they have the ability to do that [and] the legal recourse to do it.”
Uhler said he’s speaking out not only because he’s unemployed and has a lot of free time, but also so others don’t “make the same mistake I did about posting jokes like this on Facebook.”
