Not insignificant, but major amount of relationships and subsequent marriages have sprung from flirts and advances at work, obviously frequently including power-disbalanced positions. [1]
While this particular (and pretty stringent at that) declaration of code of conduct is probably conducive to business and PR goals of YC, I'm far from convinced it will be advancing health of relationships between individuals concerned.
YC isn't about building romantic relationships, it's about building companies. Mixing business and romance is a losing proposition for women, because the latter taints absolutely everything. One of the awesome things about being a guy is that I can look around at, e.g., my classmates from grad school, and be quite sure that their "mental file" of me has a lot more about my intellect and character than about my looks. If someone has my back in an argument about what our team should do, I can comfortably assume it's because they respect my position, not because they're romantically interested in me. These are things men can take for granted that women cannot. And when you allow romantic advances in professional contexts, you make it all that much harder.
I'm actually pro this blanket cover, but I just see it as band-aid with pretty unclear non-business related consequences.
As for you argument, I'm considering looks an asset to be employed alongside intellect, presentation/communication skills. I mean, I wouldn't want to live in a business enviroment where we're assigned numbers as our names, modulate our voices to sound the same, and use same unisex avatars in a VR-powered business conference all the time. Would you? That would alleviate all possible business-related concerns of yours.
What the fuck kind of response is this? Attitudes like this are the reason harassment is a problem in the tech industry. Yes, it happens. Occasionally. But not in a situation with these kinds of power dynamics. It is never appropriate to flirt with someone who is trying to engage in a business transaction with you. No exceptions.
You're not listening. It's not happening ocassionally. It's one of the major drivers of relationship genesis. You may knee-jerk deny it and be inappropriate in your response as much as you want.
Just be a professional, come on. Engaging in any kind of romantic relationship with someone who you are giving millions of dollars is the definition of unprofessional. You shouldn't have that job, period, end of story.
I'll admit the analogy was extreme, but dsirijus was acknowledging the abusive potential of scenarios that "obviously frequently including power-disbalanced positions". More than simple "business contacts".
Rather than forced rape, you could say "consensual" relationships with 13 year olds, which was once the norm.
Or for a safer analogy, Bill Gates gives millions of dollars to solve real problems, and today is a top humanitarian if you look at what he's doing. However, he attained his wealth through aggressive, unethical business practices, and there are probably many who had their financial well-being destroyed as collateral damage.
While this particular (and pretty stringent at that) declaration of code of conduct is probably conducive to business and PR goals of YC, I'm far from convinced it will be advancing health of relationships between individuals concerned.
[1] http://www.careerbuilder.com/share/aboutus/pressreleasesdeta...