Walmart appears to struggle at times to find ways to lower itself in the estimation of the world from stripping people of benefits to firing sick employees to arbitrary treatment of employees to destroying history to alleged bribery to reporting families to police for innocent pictures. Not long ago, the store fired an elderly greeter who was attacked by customer. Now, a Michigan man, Kristopher Oswald, says that he was fired after trying to help a woman being assaulted in the parking lot during one of his breaks. What is interesting is that Walmart is not denying his account.
Oswald, 30, said that he was on his break at 2:30am when he saw a man assault a woman. When he tried to intervene, he says the man assaulted him. When he was able to overcome the man, he says two men jumped him from behind. He was heralded as a hero and then he was fired.
Walmart company spokeswoman Ashley Hardie insisted that “We had to make a tough decision, one that we don’t take lightly, and he’s no longer with the company.” What tough decision? He intervened to help a woman on his break. Most people would view that as an easy decision — reward him. Only in the world of Walmart does the company immediately think that “we need to fire that guy.”
Oswald had worked for Walmart for about seven weeks. He was trying to finish his 180-day probation period when he apparently made the mistake of helping a woman.
As always, I read these Walmart stories and think that are a hoax or are wrongly reported. Then I find that they are actually true. In this case, I have found various stories repeating the allegations and not one denial from the company that it fired Oswald for helping a woman in need. If true, I am not sure what is more shocking: Walmart attitude toward its workers or its customers. Either way, I am long past serious shock over Walmart policies.
I was helping my brother-in-law one evening as he was trying to collect carts as a car pusher and store employees just stood outside and smoked and when just before 11pm the overnight stockers came forward and took all the carts from the west side cart bay leaving customers to bring in their own carts. I asked them to come outside and get them and was ridiculed and swore at and told to get back out there and do my job! As the night manager came to see what happening a customer flew by her with a small screen TV and I tackled him. I was surprised when she said I had to let him go as the store had no security working this late. So, I called the police with a citizens arrest and since the store manager refused to file a complaint he was allowed to leave and I was told to not come back to the store. My brother-in-law was terminated for me helping him. This is just one of many stories I could tell about this Wal-Mart and they are truly ugly. I personally would love to see all employee’s stop working and force management and corporate to get off their high and mighty rear ends and do a real job for the same amount they pay these good people. STOP BUYING AT WAL-MART and go to Target or elsewhere.
What ever happened to The Good Samurai laws?
Well, I think it’s quite apparent that the gentleman’s intercession extended beyond his allotted break time, a clear violation of company policy. The rules are there for a reason.
Walmart motto: “No good deed goes unpunished.”
Walmart is a stain on society. Amazon isn’t that far behind, although their misdeeds are slightly more hidden in backwoods warehouses. I’ll shop at neither. It may be a small act of disobedience, but one I am OK with.
A girl gets dinged for picking up her drunk friend, and now this kid gets fired for trying to save a woman from assault. I guess it doesn’t pay to be altruistic these days.
Just one more reason why I never shop at Wal Mart. They are a stain on our society.
Well, come on, Dr. T, give us the legal view on this. Is a company right to terminate employees who interfere in crimes during working hours or in uniform? Does that protect the company from potential liability? If you were hired to advise Malwart on this, what would you suggest?
He’s better off, if he can find another job, anyway…
“Oswald had worked for Wal-Mart for about seven weeks and said he would not have been considered a permanent employee until after his 180-day probation.”
Six months!
Lol. Welcome to Walmart! I guess we need an opinoin of a police officer as to why Oswald (fired employee) should’ve called 911 from his cell phone, instead of intervening? He should’ve known that criminals, like wolves, travel in packs of 3-4?
Target or K-Mart is going to hire this guy to be in charge of their Loss Prevention Department.
rmnixondeceased, the black guy won, get over it. Yeah, I visited your website.
Walmart wants to open a new store near Oriental, NC. The residents are opposed and on a variety of grounds. This gives them another reason. Wally in Leave It To Beaver, Wally World. Schmucks.
I had a friend that worked for MickyD’s for a while and he and his co-workers saw one of the MD’s employees coming into work at shift change be set upon roughed up by some hooligans as he crossed the street. My friend and some of the co-workers ran out and confronted the hooligans and ran them off. The manager went nuts and told them that that kind of thing was a firing offense due to liability. That meant that the company was afraid of being sued by the hooligans for MD employees possibly kicking their butts if in fact it came to butt kicking. They should have called the police was the instruction going forward. She didn’t fire anyone though, she let them off with a warning.
I would not doubt that WalMart has a similar concern. I also suspect that Walmart values passivity in its employees and anyone that demonstrates other than that, in any number of situations, during their probationary period is going to get fired.
Walmart, like too many companies these days, has contempt for its workers and for its customers.
Heh. I guess Wal-Mart feels the employee interrupted the alleged hoodlums during an act of ‘Social Justice’, believing that somewhere in the thug’s ancestry someone who may or may not have been an ancestor of the alleged victim or may have vaguely resembled her in that said mythological ancestor was a biped, did something to the alleged thug’s ancestor, triggering the innate need to exact ‘Social Justice’ from the alleged victim, for her possible ancestor’s possible crimes.
Screwy isn’t it?
Wal Mart: Good Samaritans need not apply.
Just stupefying. To intervene is a human reaction, especially in today’s world. I guess the lesson here is intervene on your time, but not ours.
I guess we must redefine the scope of totalitarianism?
Reblogged this on Brittius.com.