Retail union celebrates reinstatement of worker

Media release: FIRST Union
Thursday 16 October, 2014

Retail union celebrates reinstatement of worker wrongfully dismissed

The retail union is celebrating the successful reinstatement of one of its members after the Employment Court found The Warehouse badly handled a letter from what the Court described as an “an irate customer whose mood had gone beyond irrationality.”

Margaret Maria Harris was wrongfully dismissed from The Warehouse Kaikohe after her employer inappropriately handled what the union considers a vexatious complaint by a customer, Maxine Gay, Retail and Finance Secretary, FIRST Union, said this afternoon.

Earlier media reports today have been quoting a now outdated decision by the Employment Relations Authority. This decision has been superseded by a ruling from the Employment Court.

The letter of complaint from which Ms Harris was dismissed is included in the court’s decision. It contained deeply racist comment that Ms Harris found very offensive.

The complainant, Mr Pattinson described Kaikohe Warehouse staff as “predominantly unfriendly female non Europeans” compared to “my Eastern European wife” who is “particularly attractive and tidy looking, with various jewelry and waist length hair”.

Mr Pattinson described his dog as “probably cleaner than the people making the fuss and if swabs were taken for [faecal] coliforms from staff and the dog, I expect the dog would be carrying less”.

On the basis of the complaint and before properly investigating the matter The Warehouse apologised to the complainant without any comment of the racist content of the letter.

The judge found that this was ”an irate customers whose mood had gone beyond irrationality and invective and had manifested itself in racial prejudice and hurtful gratuitous insults not only about Ms Harris but about other staff” .

The Employment Court found Ms Harris did not make the arrogant prick comment attributed to her by The Warehouse.

“It was beyond belief that a respected, long term worker was dismissed in this way. I am pleased that justice has been done,” Maxine Gay said.

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