Air-kissing is not sexual harassment - rules UK judge.
A UK employment judge has determined that giving a colleague an "air kiss" does not constitute sexual harassment.
Judge Perry noted that this gesture, popularized by the 1990s British comedy Absolutely Fabulous, cannot be classified as "unwanted conduct of a sexual nature." This decision followed the case of Jing Jing Chen, a hospitality worker who accused her manager, Paul de Newtown, and her coworkers at a whisky bar of sexual harassment.
Chen alleged that after he walked her home from shifts at the Cut Your Wolf Loose whisky bar in Brighton during the fall of 2021, de Newtown hugged her and kissed her on the neck. However, he maintained that he only offered her an air kiss. Judge Perry remarked, “I believe the most plausible scenario is that Mr. de Newtown gave the claimant an air kiss after hugging her, which she misinterpreted as a sexual advance.
I find Mr. de Newtown to be a more reliable witness than the claimant regarding this incident, as he appeared honest and straightforward, while the claimant's testimony showed inconsistencies.” Discussing the nature of an air kiss, Perry, who presided over the case in Croydon, south London, stated, “I do not view an air kiss as unwanted conduct of a sexual nature.” He concluded that Chen's claims of sexual harassment were unfounded and dismissed them.
According to Collins Dictionary, an air kiss is defined as “a kissing gesture, especially one directed towards a person’s cheek, made without making physical contact,” with its origins traced back to 1985-90. The gesture was humorously popularized by Jennifer Saunders and Joanna Lumley in Absolutely Fabulous, often accompanied by playful phrases like “mwah, mwah, sweetie.”
The Merriam-Webster dictionary describes it as “to greet from afar with a kissing gesture of the lips.” An example from the New Yorker illustrates this: “[Christy] Turlington and her group – fellow supermodels such as Naomi Campbell, Kate Moss, and Carla Bruni – are shown frequently engaging in air-kissing and waving ciao while having fun backstage at fashion week or during a photoshoot.”
