Workplace Racism

[Premi5]

https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/racist-bullies-who-called-scots-24178650

Racist bullies who called Scots Sikh salesman 'Arab shoe bomber' kept jobs and one got promotion

Kieran Sidhu was forced to quit his job due to extreme depression and anxiety while one colleague behind the torment was promoted.

By

Tim Stewart

• 10:42, 25 MAY 2021
• UPDATED11:39, 25 MAY 2021

NEWS

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Racist bullies who tormented a Scottish Sikh salesman so badly he is unlikely ever to work again kept their jobs - and one of them has even been promoted.

John Cleary, 51, Stuart Smith, 45, and Glynn Smith, 41, were found by a tribunal to have subjected 36-year-old colleague Kieran Sidhu to a sustained campaign of vile racist abuse.

 

Perth-born Mr Sidhu endured being branded an “Arab shoe bomber”, the “only ethnic on the team” and a “temperamental Syrian immigrant” who was “f***ing for ISIS”.

It emerged during the tribunal that the sales team would sing to the tune of football chant Que Sera Sera: "Sidhu, Sidhu, he works at O2. Sidhu, Sidhu, he’s an Arab too and he’s got a bomb in his shoe."

Stuart Smith (Image: TIM STEWART NEWS LIMITED)

 

They falsely accused account manager Mr Sidhu of being gay and repeatedly taped McDonald’s adverts and a spoof ‘gigolo’ business card to his computer screen, saying that was what he would be doing after getting fired.

The panel at Southampton employment tribunal ruled that the trio racially harassed Mr Sidhu, who is now seeking a record payout of £6.6 million from tech firm Exertis.

 

After the judgment, Exertis said that it took "appropriate disciplinary action".

But it has now emerged that two of the culprits remain at the firm and one was even promoted – despite HR advice that there were grounds to sack all three.

 

The panel noted that HR manager Sue Stratton concluded that there were “grounds for disciplinary action with the probability of dismissal to be taken against John Cleary, Stuart Smith and Glynn Smith”.

However, Stuart Smith’s LinkedIn profile shows he is still at the firm and was promoted to the position of Amazon and Online Accounts Director in 2020 – three years after Mr Sidhu quit in May 2017.

Stuart Smith has been at Exertis for over 21 years, while Senior Amazon Account Manager Mr Cleary is now approaching his 24th year of service.

Calls were being put through to both men this week at their Basingstoke office.

Glynn Smith (Image: Tim Stewart News Limited)

READ MORE

• Three airlifted to hospital and man arrested after A82 horror crash

Glynn Smith is believed to have left the firm of his own accord to start up a property firm in March 2018.

Exertis declined repeated requests this week to explain why any of the trio had remained at the firm.

It continued to insist it took “appropriate disciplinary action” after a “thorough internal investigation” when Mr Sidhu quit his job suffering from extreme depression and anxiety.

Mr Sidhu, who is of Scottish and Indian descent and joined the firm in 2012, won his claims of race discrimination, racial harassment and constructive dismissal against Exertis.

In a scathing judgment, the tribunal found enquiries made by Exertis to be “inadequate” and "deficient" and outlined “flaws” in its internal probe.

It noted that the “discriminators were permitted to collude and close ranks”.

And it ruled: “We consider that the investigation was deficient in that it limited the people who were asked about allegations, largely, to those against whom allegations were made.

In respect of some of the allegations, such as the song about Mr Sidhu being a shoe bomber and the statement “f*** your mum”, if, as the claimant says, those statements and songs had been made audibly and more than once, it is entirely possible that other people, such as those in the sales administration team, would have heard them.”

The tribunal found that Mr Cleary would deep-throat peeled bananas, saying: 'Kieran, you know what time it is. You know you want some, talk dirty to me b****' and 'You must be so hard right now. That's why you won't stand up'.

He sent a team email, suggesting that Mr Sidhu have sex with him in a car park after their work Christmas dinner. He also claimed Mr Sidhu was using gay dating app Grindr and tried to force him to wear lingerie on the sales floor.

When Mr Sidhu refused, Glynn Smith asked him what was wrong, saying: "To be fair John couldn’t pimp you out for much, maybe if you lose some weight and fly you back to Syria."

Glynn Smith referred to Mr Sidhu as “f***ing for ISIS” and circulated a photo of a bikini-clad woman, said to be "Kieran's replacement".

He looked up Mr Sidhu's house on Google Maps and declared he lived in a "s*** area that looks like a terrorist war zone”, adding: “What's that place called, Aleppo?"

He branded Mr Sidhu's car the “s******* on the team”, typed its registration into webuyanycar.com and told him they were only offering £100.

When another colleague asked Mr Sidhu how it felt to be the “only ethnic on the team”, Glynn Smith said: "You will be the last ethnic if you are anything to go by."

Stuart Smith would ask Mr Sidhu questions daily like 'Did you get much sausage last night?', 'How big is your sausage?' and 'Do you have sausages in Syria?'

He emailed the team saying: '"Siduko - six sausages a day does NOT keep the doctor away."

And he sent a picture of a Vaseline tub and two fingers, to which Glynn Smith said in front of the team: "Kieran is definitely going to get f***** the most."

The tribunal rejected Stuart Smith's claim that the picture was a reference to "someone's head getting stuck in railings".

Mr Sidhu’s manager Matthew Rumsey showed “little interest” in his complaints of bullying and cared more about sales targets, the tribunal found.

Instead of helping Mr Sidhu, the tribunal found Mr Rumsey took clients off him and tried to force him out of the company “because he did not fit in with the team".

Mr Rumsey left Exertis shortly after Mr Sidhu's departure.

After assessing Mr Sidhu, psychiatrist Dr Jonathan Ornstein concluded he has a “very low chance of recovery” and is “unlikely to be able to work again” after suffering lasting psychological damage.

138216278096

In a statement, Exertis, which is owned by Dublin-based firm DCC plc, said Mr Sidhu's experience was a “unique case across a business of more than 1,800 employees".

It added: “On this occasion it was clear that certain behaviours within a part of our business fell short of the standards we expect.”

[GurjantGnostic]

11 hours ago, Premi5 said:

https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/racist-bullies-who-called-scots-24178650

Racist bullies who called Scots Sikh salesman 'Arab shoe bomber' kept jobs and one got promotion

Kieran Sidhu was forced to quit his job due to extreme depression and anxiety while one colleague behind the torment was promoted.

By

Tim Stewart

• 10:42, 25 MAY 2021
• UPDATED11:39, 25 MAY 2021

NEWS

Enter your postcode for local news and info  

e will use the information you provide to send you these newsletters. Your information will be used in accordance with ourPrivacy Notice.

Racist bullies who tormented a Scottish Sikh salesman so badly he is unlikely ever to work again kept their jobs - and one of them has even been promoted.

John Cleary, 51, Stuart Smith, 45, and Glynn Smith, 41, were found by a tribunal to have subjected 36-year-old colleague Kieran Sidhu to a sustained campaign of vile racist abuse.

 

Perth-born Mr Sidhu endured being branded an “Arab shoe bomber”, the “only ethnic on the team” and a “temperamental Syrian immigrant” who was “f***ing for ISIS”.

It emerged during the tribunal that the sales team would sing to the tune of football chant Que Sera Sera: "Sidhu, Sidhu, he works at O2. Sidhu, Sidhu, he’s an Arab too and he’s got a bomb in his shoe."

Stuart Smith (Image: TIM STEWART NEWS LIMITED)

 

They falsely accused account manager Mr Sidhu of being gay and repeatedly taped McDonald’s adverts and a spoof ‘gigolo’ business card to his computer screen, saying that was what he would be doing after getting fired.

The panel at Southampton employment tribunal ruled that the trio racially harassed Mr Sidhu, who is now seeking a record payout of £6.6 million from tech firm Exertis.

 

After the judgment, Exertis said that it took "appropriate disciplinary action".

But it has now emerged that two of the culprits remain at the firm and one was even promoted – despite HR advice that there were grounds to sack all three.

 

The panel noted that HR manager Sue Stratton concluded that there were “grounds for disciplinary action with the probability of dismissal to be taken against John Cleary, Stuart Smith and Glynn Smith”.

However, Stuart Smith’s LinkedIn profile shows he is still at the firm and was promoted to the position of Amazon and Online Accounts Director in 2020 – three years after Mr Sidhu quit in May 2017.

Stuart Smith has been at Exertis for over 21 years, while Senior Amazon Account Manager Mr Cleary is now approaching his 24th year of service.

Calls were being put through to both men this week at their Basingstoke office.

Glynn Smith (Image: Tim Stewart News Limited)

READ MORE

• Three airlifted to hospital and man arrested after A82 horror crash

Glynn Smith is believed to have left the firm of his own accord to start up a property firm in March 2018.

Exertis declined repeated requests this week to explain why any of the trio had remained at the firm.

It continued to insist it took “appropriate disciplinary action” after a “thorough internal investigation” when Mr Sidhu quit his job suffering from extreme depression and anxiety.

Mr Sidhu, who is of Scottish and Indian descent and joined the firm in 2012, won his claims of race discrimination, racial harassment and constructive dismissal against Exertis.

In a scathing judgment, the tribunal found enquiries made by Exertis to be “inadequate” and "deficient" and outlined “flaws” in its internal probe.

It noted that the “discriminators were permitted to collude and close ranks”.

And it ruled: “We consider that the investigation was deficient in that it limited the people who were asked about allegations, largely, to those against whom allegations were made.

In respect of some of the allegations, such as the song about Mr Sidhu being a shoe bomber and the statement “f*** your mum”, if, as the claimant says, those statements and songs had been made audibly and more than once, it is entirely possible that other people, such as those in the sales administration team, would have heard them.”

The tribunal found that Mr Cleary would deep-throat peeled bananas, saying: 'Kieran, you know what time it is. You know you want some, talk dirty to me b****' and 'You must be so hard right now. That's why you won't stand up'.

He sent a team email, suggesting that Mr Sidhu have sex with him in a car park after their work Christmas dinner. He also claimed Mr Sidhu was using gay dating app Grindr and tried to force him to wear lingerie on the sales floor.

When Mr Sidhu refused, Glynn Smith asked him what was wrong, saying: "To be fair John couldn’t pimp you out for much, maybe if you lose some weight and fly you back to Syria."

Glynn Smith referred to Mr Sidhu as “f***ing for ISIS” and circulated a photo of a bikini-clad woman, said to be "Kieran's replacement".

He looked up Mr Sidhu's house on Google Maps and declared he lived in a "s*** area that looks like a terrorist war zone”, adding: “What's that place called, Aleppo?"

He branded Mr Sidhu's car the “s******* on the team”, typed its registration into webuyanycar.com and told him they were only offering £100.

When another colleague asked Mr Sidhu how it felt to be the “only ethnic on the team”, Glynn Smith said: "You will be the last ethnic if you are anything to go by."

Stuart Smith would ask Mr Sidhu questions daily like 'Did you get much sausage last night?', 'How big is your sausage?' and 'Do you have sausages in Syria?'

He emailed the team saying: '"Siduko - six sausages a day does NOT keep the doctor away."

And he sent a picture of a Vaseline tub and two fingers, to which Glynn Smith said in front of the team: "Kieran is definitely going to get f***** the most."

The tribunal rejected Stuart Smith's claim that the picture was a reference to "someone's head getting stuck in railings".

Mr Sidhu’s manager Matthew Rumsey showed “little interest” in his complaints of bullying and cared more about sales targets, the tribunal found.

Instead of helping Mr Sidhu, the tribunal found Mr Rumsey took clients off him and tried to force him out of the company “because he did not fit in with the team".

Mr Rumsey left Exertis shortly after Mr Sidhu's departure.

After assessing Mr Sidhu, psychiatrist Dr Jonathan Ornstein concluded he has a “very low chance of recovery” and is “unlikely to be able to work again” after suffering lasting psychological damage.

138216278096

In a statement, Exertis, which is owned by Dublin-based firm DCC plc, said Mr Sidhu's experience was a “unique case across a business of more than 1,800 employees".

It added: “On this occasion it was clear that certain behaviours within a part of our business fell short of the standards we expect.”

Mmm mmm mmmm. I smell a huge settlement. 

[GurjantGnostic]

I'll be on their site abusing the sh....communicating this issue to them. 

https://www.exertis.com/

[GurjantGnostic]

Time to blow up a twitter. Not only this company but all their friends they do business with. 

 

[GurjantGnostic]

#promotesracism plus #everytagtheypostto

[GurjantGnostic]

What do we want?

I think a public apology to the Khalsa Panth, the gentleman afflicted, and the firing of all individuals involved, the person that promoted one of them, and everyone who oversaw the disciplinary investigation. 

And a suitable compensation to Kieran Sidhu Ji or they can just let him wreck them in civil court. Which will go better for him if we blast these people publically. 

[kcmidlands]

4 hours ago, GurjantGnostic said:

What do we want?

I think a public apology to the Khalsa Panth, the gentleman afflicted, and the firing of all individuals involved, the person that promoted one of them, and everyone who oversaw the disciplinary investigation. 

And a suitable compensation to Kieran Sidhu Ji or they can just let him wreck them in civil court. Which will go better for him if we blast these people publically. 

I don't think it'll even get to Civil Court, if settled it will be done behind closed door's, there will probably be an apology hidden on their website or social media feeds that starts with something like "We do not stand for workplace bullying..." with no mention of racism anywhere, it's all been done before, it'll be classed as "workplace banter".

The best thing to do in today's age is to hit twitter and start tagging them in publicly, to a few @"insert news company here" and @"insert local mp here" and you'll soo get some traction.

[Premi5]

some good

https://www.basingstokegazette.co.uk/news/19335858.exertist-employees-taunted-sikh-salesman-dismissed/

Exertis employees who taunted Sikh salesman 'dismissed'

By Gazette Reporter & Tim Stewart

The Exertis employees who made a saleman's life a misery through a sustained campaign of racist abuse have now left the Basingstoke company.

John Cleary, 51, Stuart Smith, 45, and Glynn Smith, 41, were found by a tribunal to have bullied 36-year-old colleague Kieran Sidhu when they worked together at tech giant Exertis in Chineham.

British-born Mr Sidhu endured being branded an “Arab shoe bomber”, the “only ethnic on the team” and a “temperamental Syrian immigrant” who was “f***ing for ISISTwo of the men were still working at the company as late as this Monday. 

However, The Gazette has now been told the individuals have left the business.

Exertis would not clarify when and whether they were sacked or if they resigned. 

The tribunal found that the sales team would sing to the tune of football chant Que Sera Sera: ‘Sidhu, Sidhu, he works at O2. Sidhu, Sidhu, he’s an Arab too and he’s got a bomb in his shoe.’

They falsely accused account manager Mr Sidhu of being gay and repeatedly taped McDonald’s adverts and a spoof ‘gigolo’ business card to his computer screen, saying that was what he would be doing after getting fired

The panel at Southampton employment tribunal ruled that the trio racially harassed Mr Sidhu, who is now seeking a record payout of £6.6 million from tech firm Exertis.

After the judgment, Exertis said that it took "appropriate disciplinary action".

But it emerged that two of the culprits remained at the firm until this week and one was even promoted – despite HR advice that there were grounds to sack all three.

The panel noted that HR manager Sue Stratton concluded that there were “grounds for disciplinary action with the probability of dismissal to be taken against John Cleary, Stuart Smith, and Glynn Smith”.

Stuart Smith’s LinkedIn profile showed he was still at the firm this week and was promoted to the position of Amazon and Online Accounts Director in 2020 – three years after Mr Sidhu quit in May 2017.

Stuart Smith has been at Exertis for over 21 years while Senior Amazon Account Manager Mr Cleary is now approaching his 24th year of service.

Calls were being put through to both men this week at their Basingstoke office.

However, following the widespread attention the tribunal has gained this week, the company has now insisted the employees no longer work there. 

It is thought that the employees must have been dismissed in the last five days. 

Glynn Smith is believed to have left the firm of his own accord to start up a property firm in March 2018.

Exertis declined repeated requests this week to explain why the men had remained at the firm after the complaint was lodged four years ago. 

It continued to insist it took “appropriate disciplinary action” after a “thorough internal investigation” when Mr Sidhu quit his job suffering from extreme depression and anxiety.

In its most recent statement, a spokesman said: "The employment tribunal decision relates to Exertis and a breach of the Equality Act 2010 within a specific area of the business.

"The complaint was made four years ago, a full internal investigation took place resulting in disciplinary action. We fully respect the tribunal’s decision and take the findings extremely seriously.

"This was a unique case across a business of more than 1,800 employees. However, it was clear that certain behaviours fell significantly below the standards we expect. Our response and ongoing commitments to invest heavily in increasing awareness in relation to diversity will ensure that this should never happen again.”

Mr Sidhu, who is of Scottish and Indian descent and joined the firm in 2012, won his claims of race discrimination, racial harassment and constructive dismissal against Exertis.

In a scathing judgment, the tribunal found enquiries made by Exertis to be “inadequate” and "deficient" and outlined “flaws” in its internal probe.

It noted that the “discriminators were permitted to collude and close ranks”.

And it ruled: “We consider that the investigation was deficient in that it limited the people who were asked about allegations, largely, to those against whom allegations were made.

“In respect of some of the allegations, such as the song about Mr Sidhu being a shoe bomber and the statement “f*** your mum”, if, as the claimant says, those statements and songs had been made audibly and more than once, it is entirely possible that other people, such as those in the sales administration team, would have heard them.”

After assessing Mr Sidhu, psychiatrist Dr Jonathan Ornstein concluded he has a “very low chance of recovery” and is “unlikely to be able to work again” after suffering lasting psychological damage.

In a statement, Exertis, which is owned by Dublin-based firm DCC plc, said Mr Sidhu's experience was a “unique case across a business of more than 1,800 employees.”

It added: “On this occasion it was clear that certain behaviours within a part of our business fell short of the standards we expect.”

[dallysingh101]

12 minutes ago, Premi5 said:

some good

Too little, too late. 

I'm sure these guys will find well paying work in no time. They'll probably be managing building sites or something next. lol

 

It's only media pressure that forced the company to make them leave, otherwise they'd probably have been promoted.  

[Premi5]

17 hours ago, dallysingh101 said:

Too little, too late. 

I'm sure these guys will find well paying work in no time. They'll probably be managing building sites or something next. lol

 

It's only media pressure that forced the company to make them leave, otherwise they'd probably have been promoted.  

Why did the company hire Mr Sidhu to start with ?