A company has defended its decision to sack one of its staff by text message,
claiming it was keeping in touch with youth culture.
Katy Tanner, a 21-year-old sales assistant, received the message while she
was off work with a migraine, the South Wales Echo newspaper said Friday.
The text message said: "We will not require your services anymore...Thank you
for your time with us."
"I don't think it's right to just text someone. At least they should have
talked to me face to face," Tanner said.
"You're not allowed to text in sick, you have to phone. The fact that they
texted me is a bit of double standards."
Several senior staff members at Blue Banana, a body-piercing and jewellery
shop based in Cardiff, defended the decision.
But company director Jon Taylor added that an internal investigation was
underway to see if "the ultimate action was ideal".
The retailer claims it tried to reach Tanner directly "five or six times" and
passed on a message through her boyfriend before the text was sent.
And store director Ian Besbie added that the dismissal method was fair
because texting was a part of "youth culture".
"We are a youth business and our staff are all part of the youth culture that
uses SMS (text) messaging as a major means of communication," he said.
The company employs about 120 people in Britain, many of them aged under 21.
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we should send one to giertych
