Update on the stealing lunches episode
By winterose
@winterose (39887)
Canada
November 15, 2011 3:02pm CST
Recap
My friend has been working in a very bad place. He was sent there by the workmens compensation board (CSST), It was a two month assignment. He was really looking forward to working there. Then things started happening. First his lunches were being stolen and he complained to the boss but nothing was done to stop it. He then put his lunch in his knapsack (they are not allowed to keep their bags at the desk) and someone was going into his bag and steal was stealing his lunch.
It appears everyone knew who was doing it but wouldn't tell him.
Well the culprit revealed himself and then it got worse he started slapping my friend in the face whenever he felt like it. My friend is a quiet man and didn't do anything about it but of course told him to stop and told the boss as well. Still nothing was done.
Finally the culprit a young 25 year old guy says to me friend, who is 56 that he hated him and he was going to beat him up. So he better step outside the building.
My friend told him straight that he was not afraid of him and he would step outside the building but remember he, my friend was a much bigger man.
The guy didn't care.
So out they went
The guy punched my friend in the face twice and then my friend got mad and fought back. He punched the guy three time and the guy went down.
The boss and the employees were all watching this.
They were cheering my friend on.
When the police came the all stood up for my friend.
However, even though he didn't intend to do it, the young guy ended up with a broken jaw and is in the hospital.
Now everyone at work is mad at my friend.
They wouldn't allow him to sit anywhere at the lunch table
so now he had to sit outside and eat by himself in the cold.
The inspector for CSST came for a visit last week
and found my friend sitting outside eating his lunch
she asked him why he was doing that and he told her the whole story
She went in to talk to the boss
who by the way was swearing at her, with f this and f that.
She immediately released my friend from that contract and he never has to go back to that place again and he is so happy.
9 people like this
15 responses
@chertsy (3798)
• United States
16 Nov 11
Bless your friends heart. Nobody should have to put up with that much crap. I don't understand the other workers knew but didn't say anything, then turned around and cheered him on during the fight. When it was said and done, they shunned him. Hopefully, the boss was fired for this to carry on for so long. He could have stopped this before this ever happened in the first place. Still I'm happy that he doesn't have to work there anymore. I don't agree with fighting but in this case, woo hoo happy to know he showed him.
3 people like this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
17 Nov 11
the boss is the owner of the company all that will happen is that the workmen's compensation board will not send him anymore people on contract.
3 people like this
@ladym33 (10979)
• United States
16 Nov 11
What a horrible work environment. I am glad he got out of that place, it sounds like a halfway house for bad teenagers or something, lots of immature people working there, what a horrible situation. I hope they don't send any more people to that place to work it sounds just awful. I know a job is a job and having any job is usually a good thing but in that situation I would rather be out of work then be treated like that.
3 people like this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
17 Nov 11
that is what I said in the discussion the csst woman will not send any more people there to that terrible place, you are right it does sound like a half way house for teenagers.
2 people like this
@Thoroughrob (11742)
• United States
16 Nov 11
I am glad your friend doesn't have to work there anymore, although I do not think it was handled properly at all.
3 people like this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
17 Nov 11
no sll of it should have been stopped with the stealing of the lunches, but unfortunately it didn't happen that way.
2 people like this
@bournecaindelta (2477)
• India
16 Nov 11
Well that's how it goes. Sometimes we just have to be good and good will surely happen to us. It's a good thing that everybody stuck with your friend when the police came or else I guess he would have been in big trouble. I guess that young rascal was troubling everybody before your friend joined that place as a 'new guy'. Good riddance I say.
Now that your friend is working in a new place I hope he is happy and that he can do a better job by not having to worry about some fellow trying to play with him or supportive colleagues. It's a very good thing that happened to him.
bourne
3 people like this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
16 Nov 11
he is not working in a new place, he is just not working at all right now until they find him something else
2 people like this
@WakeUpKitty (8694)
• Netherlands
15 Nov 11
Oh I am really so happy someone noticed your friend and he doesn't need to go back to that place.
I am sorry but I still don't feel any sorry for that 25 year old guy with that big mouth. Pity for him he broke his jaw I hope he will remember to keep his big mouth shut next time! Is this our future? Getting scould and threatened and be robbed by big mouths badly raised.
I hope your friend won't feel bad and find a great job in a way better atmoshpere.
He stil is my hero he accepted way more as he should have. Those who doesn't want to hear/listen need to feel it (dutch saying)
@telmesh (1793)
•
19 Nov 11
Being fairly new here I missed the original conversation. The main reason for me being here is to find out how the rest of the world (as far as can be on this site) operates. It is clear that there are some good points with employment that you have the CSST in Canada that once it has sent someone to a job vacancy they follow up with an inspection. This does not happen in the UK. The main thing that seems to be wrong is employment law where the employer is required to keep a safe environment. The inspector should have been able to take action regarding the verbal abuse of a government employee.
I am glad your friend does not have to put up with this abuse but he should have had a course of action open to him in law.
The owner of this company is certainly a strange person but I have heard of the way the workforce treats fellow enployees in Canada if they take a dislike to them and it is very similar to what you describe.
2 people like this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
19 Nov 11
most companies do not work like this one in Canada, we do have laws, however the CSST cannot do anything. It would have been better for my friend to contact the wage and norms commission to see if he had a case but he didn't he just wanted to get out of there and the csst inspector released him from that contract.
Now he has to find work on his own which is going to be hard because of his age.
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (160626)
• United States
16 Nov 11
I am glad for his sake that she came on a regular visit. You can tell people about situations, but nothing speaks as loudly as coming upon the facts yourself. No denying the abuse and harassment that he was undergoing.
2 people like this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
16 Nov 11
well she just came the once but that was enough after she saw him sitting outside by himself.
1 person likes this
@danishcanadian (28953)
• Canada
30 Nov 11
Why didn't your friend talk to the people at CSST when it was clear that the boss wasn't going to do anything about it? It should not have gotten as far as it did. I agree that it's a good thing the problems have stopped for your friend, but your friend should have spoken to the proper authorities long before he was stuck sitting out in the cold.
1 person likes this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
30 Nov 11
he was not able to get to them until they came to do the investigation. He was told the official would be coming down and he could talk to her them. By all this happened in a couple of days.
@sarahruthbeth22 (43143)
• United States
17 Nov 11
Free At Last! I'm so happy for your friend. He is out of the highschool-like environment!
2 people like this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
19 Nov 11
yep we are all happy that he is out of that place.
3 people like this
@BarBaraPrz (47274)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
15 Nov 11
It's good that your friend doesn't have to put up with the abuse anymore. but not so good that he's out of a job.
2 people like this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
15 Nov 11
yeah he is worried about that too, he is 56 years old, it is very hard to find a job, this was just a two month assignment though
2 people like this
@sid556 (30960)
• United States
15 Nov 11
Hi Winter,
Wow, what a crazy and horrible story! I am glad to hear that your friend was able to get out of there. No one should have to put up with that kind of stuff at the workplace. Hopefully your friend will be able to find another job and there is no question that any job would be better than this one.
2 people like this
@salonga (27775)
• Philippines
16 Nov 11
I hope that thief did not end up just with broken jaw. Your friend should have had the thief hands broken as well so he can't use them in stealing again.
I can't understand why the people in that workplace can't seem to understand what is right and what is wrong. Imagine they even hated your friend when they should rather support him because the thief deserves to be punished even more than this. Imagine he even had the guts to confront your friend after stealing his lunches.
And by the way, is it not that your friend was planning to add something to his packed lunch to give that thief a lesson? What happened with this plan? Did you post an update on that?
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
16 Nov 11
he did end up with a broken jaw.
My friend did not put anything in the lunch because the guy stepped forward and started slapping him in the face so this is the update on the story
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (166761)
• Boise, Idaho
15 Nov 11
What a story! I am sorry it came down the way it did but am glad of the out come. Some people are so weird. If their parents had taught these people better none of this would have happened. It is sad that your friend had to go through all of this. Today people don't seem to care about one another.
2 people like this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
15 Nov 11
I don;t even understand how that place can operate like that, imagine even the the boss swearing at the lady investigator from the government
2 people like this
@celticeagle (166761)
• Boise, Idaho
15 Nov 11
How do people put up with it? As long as they do it will continue.
@PointlessQuestions (15397)
• United States
15 Nov 11
I'm glad that your friend doesn't have to go there anymore. I'm wondering why the boss wasn't fired on the spot for not keeping the piece to begin with. He was as much to blame as the stupid twerp with the broken jaw. He got what he deserved for taunting your friend. That boss should be sued and fired
1 person likes this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
16 Nov 11
no I doubt he could sue, we don't sue that much in Canada
and the boss is the owner
the csst don't even have the legal power to do anything to him.
1 person likes this
