to be seriously contemplating legal action????

[WaitroseHater]

Shopping in Waitrose this afternoon trying desperately to get baby to sleep in the process. Can't stay in the house currently during her big sleep as have builders in, so planned to do the big weekly shop. DD normally goes off to sleep like a dream but today decided she didn''t want anything without a fight.

I've learned to tune her out, apparently others havent. In the BABY aisle of all places, 2 OAP's blocked my trolley and said I was not allowed to leave the aisle until the baby stopped crying or I left the shop . DD in a sling btw. One of the OAP's SHOUTED that if I needed to 'shove your teat in its mouth then you better do it or I will take her myself and get someone to take you out'. Obv attracted other shoppers and security.

Manager came to see what the fuss was and after me explaining asked me to leave. I abandoned half-full trolley in serious flounce mode. I honestly they were being absolutely horrendously discriminatory against my crying newborn!!!! DH is being extremely unhelpful saying I should have left to 'take the high road' Do I actually have a legal case about this?

You were imprisoned in an aisle by some OAP's?!? And then they threatened to "take you out"?!? Did they have masks and guns too??

If you have nothing constructive to add I don't see why a simple 'YABU' will not suffice.

I don't blame you at all for feeling so angry about this. I would suggest you write to Waitrose head office about this and wait for a nice apologetic letter and some vouchers!!! Babies cry, its what they do. I have been shopping at times and witnessed a mother trying to stop her young son having a major tantrum - I could hear the child screaming at the other end but would never have dreamt of complaining about it! I actually wanted to go over and give her a big hug knowing that one day it will be my turn. Why should you shop on the internet just because you have a baby who may cry and annoy other people. I am 100% behind you WaitroseHater

If you were so outraged - why did you leave? I would have refused.

there is no such thing as a simple YABU on MN!!

esp if waitrose is involved

if you don't want opinions contradictory to what you want to hear being expressed, do not ask the question

These OAP's are confusing me

They seem very fiesty, and at them saying they were going to 'take you out'.

Well I must say I always find the waitrose staff to be incredibly helpful.

I have 3 small dc's so reguarly shop with them and sometimes the baby may cry. They help unpack my trolly and pack all my shopping and they know my dc's names.

So I do find it pretty unbelievable that the manager behaved as he did and I suspect he/she would give a very different version of events.

And yes as someone else asked - why the namechange?

I read "take her out" to mean "escort outdoors" rather than "hire assasin"

It sounds unpleasant, but are you giving us the whole story about what happened between the OAPs telling you to breastfeed and the manager ejecting you? Were there unkind words on both sides?

I don't not believe it because it was waitrose, I've never been to waitrose. I don't believe it because it's just a load of bollocks.

Some babies cry all the time - DD3 screamed everywhere we went for the first 5 months of her life -and there was nothing I could do aboutvit. I yhink it was relux/ colic. Nevertheless I gad to do school run, shop in waitrose, go to the doctors etc. The looks, lack of sympathy, comments about her being hungry or cold were almost too much to bear.

Complain op - the manager was out of order

I used to be in charge of a customer complaints dept for a major UK company. Here's what I advise you to do - write a letter of complaint addressed by name and address to the Chairman of the John Lewis group. Make it very reasonable in tone, but say that you are very much of the mind to take your story to the local and then national press, as you are appalled at being asked to leave the store due to a crying baby (nb - babies, cry; it's a fact!). What should then happen is that some flunky in the chairman's office sees the press threat, and passes it both to customer relations and to the press office. Any press office worth their salt would try and shut you up at this point, by the judicious giving of a free shop. Worth a go, anyway?

YANBU to be very upset. Which Waitrose was this? I had this happen to me in Sainsbury's when my 2 year old was having a tantrum and nothing would soothe him - cuddles, bananas, strawberries, more cuddles, out of the trolley, back in the trolley, nothing worked. Was just about to take him out (side and probably then home)after about ten minutes (only just got passed the veg) when some interfering bitch concerned citizen told me she was going to report me to social services for doing nothing to help him as all the other shoppers were upset (apart from the old lady who patted me on the arn and said don't worry dear, it gets better). I cried for the rest of the day and started shopping online.

Legal action OTT though.

Oh dear. That sounds awful. You should write a letter, if nothing else it should be flagged up as a training issue.

I notice you changed your username for this. Who are you normally?

Am assuming that someone wouldn't register on a site just to post about this so you must be a regular and it's not an embarrassing "my fanjo is on fire" post requiring namechange so there's really no reason for you not to say who you are. You'd find people much more likely to believe you if they knew your username and it would stop all this troll talk.

I think this sounds v unlikely TBH.

But very funny reading all the 'never in a Waitrose' comments

Lawyer bit: Sorry haven't read whole thread but no you don't have a legal case. Shop management have discretion to ask you to leave or refuse entry and they were not in any way discriminating against you. You were an individual producing more noise than they were willing to tolerate.

Am a bit at you thinking that it is ok for everyone else in the store to cope with your baby's wailing.

Mum bit: Would have kicked the OAPs in the shins though and recommend Tesco for our shopping next time or ASDA. Anywhere with lots of kids and lots of noise .

If this scenario is true then I am also thinking there may have been more to it.

Did you have a big fall out with the manager or something?

TBH, I have been there - DD always used to scream before she went to sleep and I would get looks from passers by when I was pushing her up and down the high street.

BUT, I would always push her to sleep outside so that she was settled before we went in to a shop. Yes, even in winter - they have things like blankets, coats and rain covers these days, marvellous inventions they are.

Ummm. I know it's hard shopping with tiddles and the first few months are tough, but a screaming baby gets to mums and others too. Unless you're shopping for abs essentials then you have to leave. Yes it's a public place but that doesn't mean everyone does what they want, that means everyone tries to be reasonable. Yes OAPs may have had kids themselves, maybe they've had other problems since. Maybe they have scary dr appt today, or next week, or their sister died last week. Or they're lonely and shopping is the highlight of their week and you're ruining it. (New) mums aren't the only ones having a bad day and maybe some here will feel differenlty when they're an OAP about how everyone else needs to put up with a screaming baby. Intrigued you managed to get any shopping done at all with baby crying like that, but maybe that's just me.

Always remember you don't know what kind of day someone else is having - it could be utterly horrific and they're as justified as you are to be unreasonable.

legal action - what for? For upsetting you? What about them? They listened to a child screaming and worried that it was being neglected/pissing them off/you're not coping. Too much COMPENSATION CULTURE (She sings) Still you nearly always get money off or a voucher if you complain about everything. If you sue though, let's hope the defence don't send social services round to find out why you're so stressed by an everyday incident and ask if you're unable to care for your child.

Today's lesson - Avoid bulding works and newborns at all costs. It pisses mother and baby off.

Bollocks

Which Waitrose was it?

If this is made up then Waitrose could be the ones suing you for damaging their reputation!

In fact, I think we should send this thread to Waitrose and ask them to respond.

Which store was it?

My Waitrose has really wide aisles. It's one of the things I love about it. I bet I could dodge round two OAPs and make a dash for it.

Should've gone to spec savers.

Sorry, cocolepew, did you say you've never been in a Waitrose? Ever?

Not even for your 'bits'? (Can anyone afford to do their main shop there?)

I thought it was a MN pre-requisite

Am full of shock and awe.