Dear Mr. Pavlos, I am writing to discuss your exchange with Ms. Payton in the break room yesterday. Because my desk being a very short distance from the break room, I overheard Ms. Payton express her disappointment at not having received a promotion last month. I very clearly heard you state in response, “Well, maybe you need to toughen up. I know it’s hard; women aren’t exactly aggressive people.” While I assume that you were trying to give Ms. Payton some advice on the matter and had the best intentions, this sort of comment is completely inappropriate, not only in the workplace, but also in police society. Denying someone a promotion purely based on that person’s gender violates anti-discrimination laws. Also, making that sort of generalization about an entire group of people is very hurtful. While Ms. Payton filed no official complaint, this kind of talk needs to be discouraged in all facets of life. A more appropriate comment may have been something like, “People who get promotions in this office tend to be very aggressive and ask for the promotion directly. Maybe you should try that.” It is my expectation that you will be more conscious of the implications of such statements and avoid them in the future at all costs. Knowing your character, I do not believe you meant any harm. It was simply carelessness in an isolated incident. Sincerely, Mary Schmidt