Woman is called into HR over her 'exclusive' wedding invitation, leaving everyone flabbergasted
Are you required to invite everyone in the office to your wedding?
Woman called into HR over 'exclusive' wedding invitation
Weddings are stressful to plan no matter the couple's budget. Hiring a wedding planner may relieve some of the stress but not all because deciding on the guest list and all the final details sill falls on the betrothed couple. When it comes down to final numbers, some brides have to make tough decisions on who to cut to the big event, which can sometimes mean even some family members don't always make the list.
Imagine one bride's surprise when a coworker asked about an invitation to her big day fully expecting to occupy a seat at the wedding. At first the bride took the request as a joke until the unthinkable happened shortly thereafter. The strange situation started innocently enough with a coworker overhearing that the woman was getting married soon. Since the two women were not friends, just cordial coworkers, the bride-to-be didn't think her coworker would expect an invitation.
  Elegant wedding invitation with rings and dried flowers.Photo credit: Canva
Unfortunately, she was wrong. Very wrong. In a post shared online, the bride says, "This was honestly one of the weirdest work things I’ve ever dealt with. There’s a woman in my office I’m friendly with, but not close to. We’ve had small talk here and there, nothing deep. No lunches together. No real outside-of-work connection. She found out I was getting married and asked when the wedding was. Then she straight up asked if she was invited."
Admittedly, she laughed off the bizarre request while informing the coworker that the wedding will be a small event for friends and family. When the coworker learned she was not invited to watch a virtual stranger's nuptials, the new bride says the woman became cold and quiet. Though the bride found the conversation to be weird, she didn't think much of it, but just a few days later she received a notification from Human Resources.
  Colleagues engaged in a focused discussion at the office.Photo credit: Canva
It seems the disgruntled coworker reported the soon-to-be bride to their company's HR department. The confused bride writes, "Turns out she filed a complaint saying I was being 'exclusive' and 'creating a hostile environment by leaving people out.' Because I didn’t invite her. To my wedding. That I’m paying for. That isn’t even work-related. So I had to sit in this HR meeting and explain that I’m not required to invite coworkers I barely know to my literal wedding. That it’s a personal event. That it has nothing to do with work or who’s in the office."
Thankfully, it sounds like HR was on the bride-to-be's side and, after a confused glance, they closed the case. But this recounting left many people flabbergasted on what exactly the coworker was expecting and why. It gained over a thousand comments from people confused about how the situation escalated to the level of Human Resource involvement for a non-company event.
  Professional discussion during an interview.Photo credit: Canva
One person writes, "That is one of the strangest things I’ve read. Your coworker is odd. Who thinks like that? What’s next? Does she expect you to have her along on the honeymoon?"
Another adds, "I would bring up her behavior to human resources. Someone needs to explain to her that her behavior is unprofessional and inappropriate."
"That is batsh*t crazy! Did she really think HR could force you? Were you supposed to invite the entire company for that matter and if so will your job be paying for the wedding?? WTF! The entitlement is beyond anything I’ve ever heard of!" someone else chimes in.
  Celebrating love with champagne and joy! 🥂🎉✨Photo credit: Canva
As if it wasn't strange enough to have to explain to HR why you didn't invite a coworker to your wedding, the woman has also been dealing with her coworker's catty comments, "But now she acts super passive-aggressive toward me. Like side-eyes, little digs when I walk by. Still bringing it up in these weird sarcastic comments like, 'Some people are so inclusive these days.'"
It would seem that the coworker took being excluded from the wedding as permission to make the other woman uncomfortable. Several people expressed their concern for the woman's safety as well as encouraged her to report the coworker's new behavior to HR.
  Overwhelmed at work, taking a moment to regroup.Photo credit: Canva
A concerned commenter shares, "It's gone beyond the point where you can 'ignore it' - make sure you have details of everything she's done since then to create a hostile work environment."
"File a counter claim to HR about her creating a hostile work environment and the passive aggressive comments. That is a workplace issue unlike your wedding," someone declares.
For now, there's no update on if the original poster reported her coworker to HR for her strange behavior, but she's got the support of social media whatever happens (or doesn't happen) next.