I think what she&#x27;s trying to say is that while firing the individual is an easy solution, it isn&#x27;t the best solution.  In fact I would say it has a number of negative consequences for the employer beyond the cost of losing the employee.<p>Firing the individual without an investigation by HR sends a message of zero tolerance to intolerance (an intolerance of intolerance) to every other employee in the company, that any employee faux pas is utterly unacceptable.  This would create a guarded work environment and have negative impact on the culture.<p>The two employees agreed to take the conversation from a work platform (i.e. Slack) to a personal platform (i.e. Whatsapp).  To me this is akin to asking someone in the Office break room if they&#x27;d like to get coffee at Starbucks, it&#x27;s asking to broaden a relationship beyond the scope of coworker.  At this point the scope of their relationship (i.e. work related vs personal) is nebulous and I would argue broadens the scope of acceptable conversation.<p>From what little we know, it sounds like it wasn&#x27;t unreasonable for him to think the bounds had been extended and also the guy grossly overstepped his bounds.  In that regard, firing him summarily might be grounds for a lawsuit.