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Original poster

DS in trouble at work

166 replies

Whenisithometime · 16/03/2020 17:36

Hi

Just want advice.

My son is 18 and I just wanted to ask for other people’s advice regarding a silly incident.

He works in Tesco part time at the weekend. Recently, he posted something on his Facebook, it was something like “would be great if Tesco would close because of coronavirus so I can have some time off”

DS does not have his manager on his Facebook, so somebody on his has obviously told him. His manager rang him and asked him if he could come in sometime this week to speak to him regarding his social media content.

I just think this is shockingly ridiculous. What exactly has DS said that is so wrong? He obviously didn’t mean anything bad by what he wrote. Surely this is an overreaction?

OP posts:
Pamalarrrr · 16/03/2020 19:09

It was a silly joke, yes he will learn, but the person who told on him is pathetic

DingleberryRose · 16/03/2020 19:09

Recently, he posted something on his Facebook, it was something like “would be great if Tesco would close because of coronavirus so I can have some time off”

Not too bright is he!? If he’s breached their policy on social media usage which it sounds like he has (would have been covered during his induction) they can let him go no questions asked. Number one rule or employment, NEVER post about your job on social media!!

DingleberryRose · 16/03/2020 19:12

But he is only 18 and has a lot to learn. He doesn’t have enough life experience yet

Unfortunately, the real world doesn’t give a shit.

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about this subject:

Families
itsallthedramaMickiloveit · 16/03/2020 19:12

I'd be more sympathetic to it.

I wouldn't be!
And if somebody tried that BS with me it would tell me everything I need to know about them in 2 seconds.

If I didn't sack them there and then I wouldn't trust them for any progression.

GreenTulips · 16/03/2020 19:14

My 14 year olds know better.

I hope you told him they would be within their rights to terminate his employment and not gone on about how unfair it all is?

No doubt you’ll go to the meeting with him to explain the ‘joke’ and how he isn’t capable of understanding rules of employment?

itsallthedramaMickiloveit · 16/03/2020 19:14

You said he gets on well with his boss. Is that his direct line manager?
Who was the infraction reported to? Does it go above his line manager? If they get on well and his LM isn't under and pressure from above he could get away with a warning. But don't make up any pathetic excuse.
Tell him he was stupid. Tell him to own it. Apologise for it and promise them nothing like that will ever happen again.

diddl · 16/03/2020 19:15

What an idiot-works part time & is joking about the place closing so he can have time off?

There are people that would appreciate his job!

Shinycat · 16/03/2020 19:16

@GreenTulips

My 14 year olds know better.

Good for them!!! Hmm

What's your point exactly? Confused

heartsonacake · 16/03/2020 19:17

He’s putting the company into disrepute because he’s giving the impression he doesn’t care about work and would rather not be there; implying the company to be a poor employer.

Even if he hasn’t mentioned Tesco by name, there will be clues on his Facebook as to where he works.

He can be fired for gross misconduct and rightly so. He needs to learn to be careful. Tesco will have a social media policy and he is in breech of that.

CappyCapCap · 16/03/2020 19:18

Fake that its part of a mental health issue and wasnt really a joke at all?

Yeah, great life lesson. Do what you want, pretend you have a mental health problem and all will be ok. Wtf?

OneHanded · 16/03/2020 19:19

He would have been warned not to do this when he started too. He’s breached his contract and thus disciplinary.

TheMemoryLingers · 16/03/2020 19:22

He’s putting the company into disrepute because he’s giving the impression he doesn’t care about work and would rather not be there; implying the company to be a poor employer.

I don't agree. I work for a great employer and I take pride in my work - does that mean, given the choice, that I would rather be at work than having time off? No, of course not. If no one other than people who worked for bad employers and didn't care wanted time off, there'd be no reason to offer annual leave.

HighDefinitionComfy · 16/03/2020 19:23

I hope your son doesn’t lose his job OP, I really do. Good luck with the meeting. Sending hugs to you both.

SuperMeerkat · 16/03/2020 19:24

There’s a lot of Pearl clutchers on here today @Whenisithometime 🤦‍♀️ Don’t listen to them, they’ve probably got nothing better to do than be mean and count bog roll. Yes, your son was daft but it’s not the end of the world. Hopefully it will all blow over soon.

SunshineCake · 16/03/2020 19:25

It's a silly and immature thing to write given how serious this all is.

coconuttelegraph · 16/03/2020 19:27

I'm sure your son won't be in trouble, the manager knows he is only 18

Eh? How can you be sure about that? Employment rules have to apply equally to everyone, you can't set them by age, if Tesco do have a strict policy on SM usage it will apply to all employees.

JoshLymanIsHotterThanSam · 16/03/2020 19:28

I suspect his manager is more likely to be bringing him in for a quiet word-you know “watch what you put on there-some people are snakes” I think if they fire him/discipline him it would be a massive over reaction.

muminlondon2020 · 16/03/2020 19:29

He needs to eat humble pie. Apologise profusely, it was just a silly joke in a tense frightening situation, he's worried about his gran etc and was trying to alleviate tension in his family & friends, make them laugh etc.

If (!) they buy it, he needs to grow up. World is a big and unforgiving place and that kind of behaviour is foolish.

Hoppinggreen · 16/03/2020 19:31

It doesn’t really matter if we all think he was just having a laugh Or whether we all think he should lose his job . It’s up to his manager and/or Tesco’s social media policy

lyingwanker · 16/03/2020 19:36

OP I agree with you. He was silly to put something like that considering Tesco give a speech during induction regarding their strict SM policy but it's hardly worthy of a sacking is it?

Of course this is a worrying time, most people are taking it very seriously and following the daily advice given by the experts but come on....we can't all walk round in a state of panic can we? We need to be teaching our kids resilience and how to handle stressful times well, not walking around panicking not daring to crack a joke.

Sleepsoon7 · 16/03/2020 19:37

He may be given the option of facing a disciplinary (which will then be on his ‘record’ if they decide against him and could potentially lead to being fired depending on what their policy is and whether it is considered gross misconduct) or of resigning. I’m Speaking from what I know happened to the DS of a friend who was accused of something different and potentially more serious. With friends DS (who I reiterate was accused of something different) he was given this option and told he needed to decide there and then (although they gave him the opportunity to phone his DPs to ask for advice). It may all be fine but you may want to discuss various options with him. Good luck and hopefully he will just be given the opportunity to apologise and move on.

Hmpher · 16/03/2020 19:46

Seems like a massive overreaction to me. Of course everybody would rather not go to work if they didn’t have to. He’s not saying that he’s glad about deaths from coronavirus or that he hopes people won’t be able to buy food! It’s not as though he’s thought it through, it’s just a silly thought. Loads of people use humour in these sorts of situations and can be a bit flippant. I’ve heard many things today which all of these uptight posters would apparently gasp at. Not one of those people is saying that they don’t care that people are dying of this virus. They can’t change that. People make jokes and comments and stupid memes about all kinds of serious and current issues. I am worried about relatives in vulnerable groups but I certainly don’t expect everybody to walk around being sombre so as not to offend me. Most people are worried about friends and relatives in vulnerable groups.

That doesn’t mean that tesco won’t be funny about it though. Whether or not I think it’s an overreaction, if it breaches their contract then it breaches their contract.

JemSynergy · 16/03/2020 19:47

Tell your son to ensure his facebook is completely locked down when it comes to his privacy settings, avoid listing his place of work and avoid adding colleagues. When viewing facebook on a laptop there is a tab right hand side of the profile which when pressed shows how your facebook looks to the public, therefore, you can see what is public and adjust settings.

Puzzledandpissedoff · 16/03/2020 19:47

he deleted the post ... and Deleted his Facebook as soon as his manager contacted him

A bit late I'm afraid, and changing the story to "I never even mentioned their name online" - unlikely in itself - is something you'll never know the truth about (though his manager probably does)

It's not the end of the world though; teens think they're invincible, and if future recruiters refused everyone who'd once done something silly there'd be few left to employ
The key here is to resist making excuses, learn from it and move on with better understanding

HeartsTrumpDiamonds · 16/03/2020 19:52

Social media is such a minefield. I hope his meeting goes ok OP.