Have you been improper in your work? I sure hope so because being proper kind of sucks. Women, minorities, people of certain religions, gay people, people of certain gender identities, laws regulating things like worker safety, the presence of child laborers, people being paid what they were promised were, at one time were (and in some places still are) considered improper for the workplace.
But what is really improper are rules or situations in the workplace that prevent people from expressing who they are. So often, claims about improperness are just excuses to express people being their authentic selves. Ironically, sometimes, claims about improperness are the most improper things themselves.
If and when you hear claims about something being “proper,” be a champion and consider who is really being improper, the one being accused or the one making the claim. It could be either, but if it’s the later, speak up and stand up for what you think is right.
