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Comment by dipthegeezer | Hacker News Reader

Well you still have job adverts from big boys like twitter saying 'responsible enjoyment of beer' as a prerequisite.

https://twitter.com/jobs/positions?jvi=ooE7VfwO,Job

If that's not appealing to the frat boy crowd then I don't know what is.

Not to mention the fact that a lot of people don't actually drink ( I know hard to believe! ), or have a life that doesn't involve drinking all the time. As someone who's been there and got the T-shirt I get jaded when I see things like this. A lot of the best coders are past the 'frat boy' stage and prefer a mature working environment when they see things like this it sends alarm bells ringing.

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There's a radical difference between a grown up workplace that sips a couple of high quality microbrews at Friday happy hour (my most recent workplace), and a frat house doing keg stands.

And there's a lot of room in between the extremes.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with a social culture that enjoys a few beers after a hard day of work. On the contrary, it builds bonds between co-workers and leads to better work product.

"a grown up workplace that sips a couple of high quality microbrews at Friday happy hour" is exactly what I think of when I see the phrase "responsible enjoyment of beer".

"The frat boy crowd" approach is completely different -- irresponsible enjoyment of being drunk; the beer is incidental.

It would obviously exclude Muslims, so might be viewed as discriminatory.

As long as there are alternatives provided - e.g. soda or juice - it should be OK for Muslims and other non-drinkers. Unless the very presence of alcohol is an issue.

Note that in the workplace I mentioned, the CTO (a co-founder of the company) was a life-long non-drinker and participated enthusiastically in after-work social events that involved responsible use of beer and other alcoholic drinks. He just drank soda or water.

As long as there are alternatives provided - e.g. soda or juice - it should be OK for Muslims and other non-drinkers

Yes probably.

It's all a continuum. Saying pre-req: "enjoyment of beer" is basically "No muslims". Having a lot of social functions depend on beer could be an issue. Imagine the high power workplaces of the past (and now I'm sure) where business decisions were made in the strip club, which women would feel uncomfortable in. Something like that for muslims could be consured as a weak form of sectarianism, and potentially make the employer somewhat liable.

It's a "plus", not a prerequisite. I really don't see a problem with that one? I used to work at Dean Kamen's DEKA (the place that made the Luke arm and the Segway). It was very un-frat boy crowd. Some Fridays were declared "Beer Friday" and at 4 PM everyone would shuffle into a room and have a couple beers and converse about their projects and ideas.

I really don't see a problem with that one?

It excludes Muslims? Religious based discrimination is illegal.

Because as we all know, women don't like beer.

My company has a fully stocked bar. We don't force people to drink, but we have plenty of employees (including women) who enjoy it especially after a long day or in celebration of something.

What is sexist about 'responsible enjoyment of beer'? For the record, I agree that sexism is a huge problem in tech but plenty of women enjoy beer and it's pretty ridiculous to suggest that any mention of beer is an automatic appeal to men.

It implies that a drinking culture is important within the company. This tends to appeal to "bros" moreso than other groups and can be a major turnoff to most others.

It also would exclude Muslims, and could be viewed as religious discrimination.

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