There's a followup story. Looks like Ramsey is an even bigger asshole than I thought:
https://religionnews.com/2021/01/15/dave-ramsey-is-tired-of-being-called-a-jerk-for-his-stands-on-sex-and-covid/It sounds like he wants to be the leader of a cult, not the owner of a business. He claims the right to police what employees and their families do in their private lives, including firing them for having premarital sex!
Ramsey’s intolerance for dissent has created what former employees call a cultlike environment, where leaders proclaim their love for staff and then fire people at a moment’s notice.
Ramsey Solutions, former employees and their spouses say, is run more like a church than a business. A review of court documents, company emails and recordings of staff meetings backs up these sources’ claims that company leaders attempt to exert control over employees’ personal lives.
From the beginning, he mocked people who take COVID-19 seriously. 400,000 deaths later, he hasn't changed his attitude at all:
His March 2, 2020 radio show began with a long rant against the news media, who, he said, were overstating the threat.
“You would think that the black plague was coming through the U.S., listening to people whine,” he told his audience. “You guys have lost your mind out there.”
He went on to say that the virus only affected the weak and infirm and that everyone else should get on with business as usual. He vowed to keep the company’s live events rolling, warning there would be no refunds.
“We have people calling in, they are wanting to cancel stuff for a live event in May — let me tell you how much of your money I am going to give you back if you don’t come for the coronavirus in May,” he said. “ZERO. I am keeping your money. You are a wuss.”
Ramsey fired one employee because his wife - not the employee, but the wife of the employee - complained on social media that she had asthma, and Ramsey's forcing her husband to come into the office put her at risk. According to the story, he also threatened to fire anyone who makes a complaint to OSHA about unsafe conditions in their maskless, non-socially-distanced workplace.
And then there's this major WTF moment. When one of Ramsey's radio hosts, Chris Hogan, had an affair, he demanded that the couple get counseling but waive confidentiality so their therapist could
report in to company management on how it was going:
...after a meeting that included the Hogans, leaders from their church and other members of the company’s board, the company set up a “restoration plan” for the couple’s marriage that would allow the book tour to go forward. After the tour, Chris would take time off to work on the couple’s marriage.
Melissa Hogan said she agreed with the plan at first but then became concerned at the level of control that Ramsey’s leadership wanted.
“In essence, as part of that process, we were to waive confidentiality with our therapists in order for them to report to Ramsey Solutions’ leaders,” she said in her email. “I now recognize that to be unhealthy, controlling, spiritually manipulative, and deeply wounding.”
From the story, it sounds like Ramsey has a control-freak attitude toward his employees' personal lives and a creepy obsession with who's having sex with who. Getting people out of debt is one thing, but this is something else.