Waitrose regulars are unhappy after the supermarket fired a long-standing employee for trying to stop a shoplifter at the branch in Clapham Junction, southwest London
Waitrose shoppers have today vowed to never use the supermarket again after it sacked a loyal employee for trying to stop a shoplifter.
The firm’s decision to dismiss Walker Smith, 54, was blasted by social media users, including many regulars at the supermarket. Walker’s 17-year employment with Waitrose ended abruptly despite his brave heroics to try to detain a shoplifter who had attempted to smuggle high-end Easter eggs.
The fury has become so fierce shoppers have said they will use alternative supermarkets instead. One posted online: “After you sack a long-standing employee for trying to stop a shoplifter, I’m afraid I can no longer shop at your store… Disgusting decision.” Another said: “@Waitrose You have been every unfair and, as a result, I will no longer shop at your stores. This is outrageous.”
Waitrose, which has more than 300 branches in the UK, said in a statement challenging shoplifters poses “a serious danger to life”. It stressed it is not company policy for its staff to tackle shoplifters.
READ MORE: GMB’s Kate Garraway reveals harrowing shoplifting encounter ‘I was screaming’READ MORE: Shocking moment pensioner ‘pushed by Morrisons security guard’ before falling
But the statement has done little to appease its customers. Another wrote online: “I will no longer shop at Waitrose.” A further punter posted on X: “People should not be penalised for standing up for what’s right. @Waitrose not only need to immediately re-empliy Walker Smith. They need to apologise to Walker who has given 17 years of service and saw Waitrose as ‘his family'”.
The shoplifter, who Mr Smith said he recognised as a repeat offender, fled from the store in Clapham Junction, southwest London as the shop assistant picked up a piece of broken chocolate, throwing it “out of frustration” in the direction of some trolleys. Although he insists he did not aim for the thief, he was scolded by his manager and made to apologise.
His superior then decided to escalate the incident, leading to Mr Smith pleading with his store managers to keep his job, saying Waitrose was like his “family”. However, the man was dismissed recently, which has led to the outrage among customers.
The supermarket noted that employees had previously been hurt while confronting thieves, and it would never wish to place its workers in a dangerous situation. A Waitrose spokesperson said: “The safety and security of our Partners and customers couldn’t be more important to us, and we have policies in place to protect both. We’ve had incidents where our Partners have been hospitalised when challenging shoplifters. Luckily, they have always recovered, but that might not always be the case.
“There is a serious danger to life in tackling shoplifters. We refuse to put anyone’s life at risk and that’s why we have policies in place that are very clearly understood and must be strictly followed.
“As a responsible employer, we never want to be in a position where we are notifying families of a tragedy because someone tried to stop a theft. Nothing we sell is worth risking lives for.
“The reporting on this does not cover the full facts of the situation. While we would never be able to discuss an individual case, we can assure you the correct process is being followed, which includes a standard appeals procedure.
“We have campaigned for some time for more to be done to protect shop workers from offenders, including retail crime being made into a specific stand alone offence.”
