M&S apologises over trans employee in bra department (Telegraph)

[WimbledonWhites]

How many “cis” male members of staff do you suppose would approach teenage girls in the lingerie department?
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/08/04/ms-apologises-over-trans-employee-in-bra-department/

https://archive.ph/nTDB9archive.ph/nTDB9

What did this person do wrong exactly,?

This man caused distress to a young girl by inappropriately approaching her to talk about underwear with her.

He distressed a young girl customer with his actions.

Read the room Lun82. A male trying to "help" a teenage girl choose underwear? Seriously?

As far as I can from the thread, this employee asked a mum and her daughter if they needed any help. That's their job.

@Lun82 if you don’t understand the sensitive associated with the issue, there’s nothing more to be said.

We don't know anything about the employee except a complaint from a customer. There is not proof that they were trans, they did nothing wrong. They asked a women and her daughter if they needed help,

Anyone who asks why a grown man shouldn't be approaching a teenage girl to involve himself in her bra shopping reveals everything we need to know about him and it's such a kicker that they always think they're hiding it. They're as convincing as Bugs Bunny in drag, although sadly not as funny and probably not as good at singing opera.

But men's feelings take precedent...

No decent person would approach a female child in an underwear section when they are MALE (and meant to be working in another section)

It's an underwear section, not a changing room or a single sex space. Even if (again we have no proof if anything about this employee) they were trans, they did nothing wrong.

It's NOT the job of men to help women choose underwear. And it seems he didn't ask the mum, he only asked the daughter, while the mum wasn't in sight. It's certainly not the job of men to help teenage girls choose underwear.

He didn't see the mother.

I believe the Mum and daughter.

It's the employees job to ask customers if they need help. It's what they are paid to do. She was with her mother. They were asked if they needed help. The end.

Yes he’s a transwomen. m&S confirmed this
No he doesn’t work in the women’s lingerie section
Yes the mum and 14 yr old girl were in the bra section
Yes he went over to the 14yr old girl in the bra section whilst she was standing alone
Yes he said something to her
Yes he went when he saw her mum
Yes he intimidated and upset the 14 year old girl

Yes he shouldn’t be in the women’s lingerie section approaching anyone

In fact
Staff at M&S do not approach ladies to ask if they need help in lingerie, or any section.
If we need help we ask for it.

Ive had enough of M&S. First the bloody mixed sex changing rooms with just curtains and now this. I don’t need people following me around the shop and peering at me whilst I change.

I can’t trust that the changing cubicles don’t have cameras since men use the same ones. So many do these days.
Im done with them

This wide eyed, hand maiden, delusional take is astonishing to me.

A young girl was upset by a man's inappropriate action. And you think that young girl is in the wrong here?

Mindblowing.

Once again there is no proof that this employee was trans. They did nothing inappropriate. Sing customers if they need help is their job.

It's irrelevant whether the employee was trans; he was a man, and that's what matters. And for the billionth time, yes he did do something wrong.

I mean shit, we've all been teenage girls so we absolutely met these guys who sought us out, and had to find ways to extricate ourselves without making them angry. It was bad enough back then with so many overtly sexist attitudes. Now imagine it's happening again but they're costumed as women, expect you not to notice they're men and in the background a Greek chorus of wide-eyed creeps demands to know what the problem is.

You remember how back in the day they were just saying hello, just being friendly, stop being such a rude bitch, you there in your school uniform? This is what they do now. And they think we still don't notice.

Can you @Lun82 explain why you think it is socially acceptable for a male member of staff to approach a 14 year old girl (who was not looking for help from a member of staff ) and seek to speak to her about underwear generally and specifically about her bra size?

Your misogyny is gross. Honestly. 🙄

You've never been a teenage girl, have you @Lun82 ?

Do you ever go to M&S? It would be very unusual to be approached by a member of staff while browsing and asked if you need any help. That happens in some shops, not in M&S. It would be even more unusual to be approached by a male in the women's underwear section. Especially if you're a young teenage girl. The member of staff may or may not have intended any harm, but the approach was inappropriate and they should be aware of that.

What do you mean it's irrelevant? The discussion in this thread is all about how wrong it is for a male employee to ask a teenage girl if they need any help. The employee could easily have been female.

I feel all Naomi Cunningham here:

Let's take Pete. Pete works for Marks and Spencers in the Menswear section. Pete is a man with XY chromosomes, wearing a man's M and S uniform. He wanders from the men's clothing section into women's lingerie and goes up to a young girl who appears to be alone and starts talking to her about helping her in that section.

But he wasn't. We know that.

The relevance is that the child appears to be alone and is in an female underwear section. No decent male - Pete, or Lucinda or whatever he's called does that. Not when he's not assigned to that section ( which he shouldn't be anyway)