My dismissal is described as harsh by my union and many customers and friends. I thank those customers and friends for their kind words and support.
I believe my dismissal was unfair and for that reason, the next stage for me is to head to the tribunal.
First, I have to offer Tesco a chance to sort this out via ACAS.
There are a number of points I will be raising.
Point one: Is the harassment I received from a former Oakham Mayor who posted comments about me on Tesco's Facebook Page when I first started working for Tesco in 2017. The comments have never been deleted, he kept harassing me at my place of work, the harassment only stopped after he was captured on CCTV knocking into me with a basket in-store. Although Tesco say they take the safety of their staff seriously, they don't. That customer was still permitted to shop in store at the end of the day its all about the money.
Point two: harassment from Adam Lowe Oakham Mayor and Rutland County Councillor who often wrote to Dave Lewis the CEO of Tesco and had meetings with my store manager Jen Drew about me, why to this day I don't know. This ended when he complained about a breach of privacy after Jen told me about the meeting. Why he did not think he was breaching my privacy, by interfering with my employment. The is a big question as to why Tesco agreed to these meetings with him.
Point three: Another former Oakham Mayor Michael Haley, who also harassed by writing to Tesco complaining about the content of my blog, also harassed me and made me feel uncomfortable instore.
Point four: Former Councillor and current councillors over the years put posters up, in and around the store warning customer to avoid me etc. Tesco did nothing to stop this harassment in my work place.
Point five: is probably the most serious incidents that Tesco were happy to ignore. This is the constant harassment I subjected to in my work place by another former Mayor Cllr Joyce Lucas BEM.
It all started in 2018 when she described me as a paedophile to my colleagues in front of customers.
Tesco did nothing, so I wrote to Joyce Lucas telling her to stop harassing me at work and to stay away from the store. Tesco gave me a final written warning for bringing the brand into disrepute. following this every visit to the store Joyce Lucas would harass me and make unacceptable comments about me to colleagues. I raised this with a number of managers and some colleagues did the same and Tesco did nothing.
Point six: whilst this is all going on two of the older colleagues were telling other colleagues not to speak to me because I was a horrible person, no surprise when you consider one of them was a friend of a former mayor. I raised this with my checkout manager and he did little to help, he was pretty useless in the end he had a meltdown sat on the floor and left Tesco to become a cleaner in a shopping centre.
Something did change nearly two years on it changed and one of the old ladies said she was sorry for what had happened, she had listened to gossip about me and misjudged me. working at Tesco was like working in an old fashion factory.
Point seven: A female colleague pretended to fall in love with me and sexually harassed me by poking a pen up my backside, whilst I was working. I asked her not to do it, more than once and each time she told me I enjoy that. I finally made a complaint after she rather publicly 'joked' she wanted to marry me, I reminded her, I was gay just in case she had forgotten, She replied its fine, I will buy a strap on. I felt this was getting seriously out of hand, so I made a complaint to get it stopped, Tesco did not take my complaint seriously although the harassment did stop. I think if I was doing the same to a female colleague I would have been sacked and possibly arrested. The Colleagues actions were also homophobic in my opinion and her assaults were unacceptable, can you imagine the fuss if I was repeatedly pushing a pen up a female colleagues rear, turn the table and a female does it to a man that is fine. Thank's Tesco.
Point eight: I was serving a customer who had a colleague discount card and there are strict rules about its use, only the person who is given the card can use it. the colleague had decided he would like to use it for around four or five friends and family on individual transactions. When I said he could not, he was fine but his father, was not he was extremely rude and aggressive. I was asked by team support to leave the checkout, apparently I did not leave quick enough, so I received a warning. Later that week we were shown a new Tesco safety video which clearly instructs us to stay behind a counter if we feel safer. I told Joe at the time well that's what I wanted to do and he said I knew you would say that. Now I wish I had appealed the warning.
Especially as it was clearly said I did nothing wrong by enforcing the colleague card rule. Tesco is far to harsh in the way it treats staff when customers complain. Although I am aware the colleague was dealt with I don't know how, I do know the rude father was given a £50 gift card from the Oakham Store why?
Point nine: Grocery Manager Fee while Jen the nice store manager was absent, I had a customer complain because I was a jobsworth for refusing to sell her four packets of paracetamol, this often happens with customers, but most don't react like this one did, I did the correct thing and walked away, the customer then spoke to Fee or should I say ranted about me and how I had embarrassed her. After the customer departed Fee decided to call me into the office and rant at me, she told me we have to put up with customers being rude etc. and I should have asked the customer why she wanted me to break the law and I would have founf out the customer had just lost her father and her mother was ill. Probably a good reason not to sell the woman four packets of pills. And no shop worker has to put up with customer being rude to them. I thought the matter was closed although fee had not made any formal record of our meeting. a few days later I was given a invitation to attend a investigation meeting. I was somewhat surprised. Although not really I had made a complaint about Fee's conduct towards me and another matter. The meeting started but was adjourned and when Jen returned to work the matter was ended and there was no further meeting. All went quiet until the next point.
Oh this is Fee on Facebook she lets everyone know she is a Tesco manager and a cunt very ladylike!
I don't really know where Tesco finds its department managers. I am sure Tesco is very proud to be associated so publicly with such a description.
Point ten: A customer complains about me and another colleague, The customers claimed we were both rude and I was homophobic. After the female colleague asked the two men to get a trolley each they objected even though she could have asked one of them to wait outside due to Tesco's policy of one person one trolley to help with the current social distancing. once again I was invited to a investigation. at this meeting it became clear that the customers had also complained about my facebook posts they did not provide a post or say what was wrong so the admin lady Debby Twaites screen shot a post she thought they might be objecting to this is highly likely as it was the first time I ahd mentioned work in a post, I had asked people to social distance and not laugh at me or blow their noses in my face at work when I asked them to social distance. I myself was starting to get a cold so all this was a bit worrying. to cut a long story short the investigation mainly dealt with the alleged social media breach and a tiny bit about the alleged being rude to the customers part. Iain Ormiston did not and was not interested in dealing with the homophobic part of the customers complaint. I think due the time spent on the social media part and 18 pages of notes that some one had instructed him to go down that path, he gave about ten lines if that to the alleged rudeness. I was found guilty and was told I would have a disciplinary hearing. The next seven days I was off work self isolating and Tesco conducted the disciplinary hearing over the phone which was very difficult and stressful. after days of conference calls, I was sacked over the phone on the 6th April 2020, I had not breached the social media policy.
I was found to have been rude to the customers. mainly due to the female colleague lying to cover her own back, she said I was sitting on the wall outside the front door (there is no wall) and she said I came over to her and said in front of the customers oh the queens of Oakham are the queens of Oakham bothering you? neither me or her were rude to the men and as gay man I find it hard to believe I am accused of being homophobic. I fully understand the customers frustration during this difficult time, no one should have lost their job and I don't believe the customers wanted that to happen after reading their complaint. Personally I am pleased I am not having to deal with the rude customers, I think it is disgusting that my former colleagues are breaking down at work because of the poor behaviour of minority of customers. What I can't understand is Dave Lewis churns out statements giving instructions on how stores should be implementing social distancing only for department managers to say staff can not enforce government advice both manager during the investigation and disciplinary said this.
Whilst working at Tesco I was paid to be nice to all customers even some of the most disgustingly behaved and I always did my best for Tesco, because that is what I was paid to and it is nice if customers are happy. Many were and I thank them for their kindness. many sent in good customer feed back and compliments, sometimes I was told about it and other times not.
Although there are many things I hated about my job I had at Tesco there were a lot of good points.
and I never told customers what I hated about my job like some shop worker do.
Often I was rewarded for good customer service, I don't know how when I was good consider the crap I had to put up with at work, I guess its because retail is like the pretence of the theatre.
I was very happy at Christmas, I was fast tracked and received my bronze and silver superstar awards. I have since sold them on Ebay for £44.
Today I went shopping in the store and was given what I should have been given at Easter
a card, mini eggs and a scratch card from my former managers Jen and Emma.
The card reads and its does seem odd considering I was sacked on the 6th April before Easter.
To Martin, this is just a small token to show our appreciation, for the difficult
time we have faced and for what we are going to deliver over the coming weeks
You're a superstar!
Lots of love Jen, Emma and The Team.
As you can see I was highly thought of by my former store manager Jen and her deputy Emma both nice people.
One final point Paul a department manager from Kettering wrote in concluding his notes, a very odd observation in his notes, Martin shows no remorse.
I am sorry, I was not even in the room with the man, I was at home not feeling to good and had nothing to be remorseful about.
Tomorrow I start my ACAS application. Hopefully I wont need to see Tesco in court but if it happens I am ready.
Note to Former Mayor of Oakham please don't complain to Tesco about me publishing these pictures of my Easter Gift for good customer service like you did the year before. to be honest Tesco is probably just as fed up with those connected to Oakham Town Council as I am.
