Employee fired via SMS
2006-08-05 07:53
London - A British company defended on Friday its decision to sack one of its staff members by SMS, 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, said the South Wales Echo newspaper.
The text message said: "We will not require your services anymore...Thank you for your time with us."
Tanner said: "I don't think it's right to just text someone. At least they should have talked to me face to face."
"You're not allowed to SMS in sick, you have to phone. The fact that they sent me an SMS 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.
Dismissal method fair
However, company director Jon Taylor said 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 said the dismissal method was fair because sending an SMS was a part of "youth culture".
"We are a youth business and our staff are all part of the youth culture that uses SMS as a major means of communication."
The company employs about 120 people in Britain, many of them aged under the age of 21.