Boston, MA 10/18/2013 (wallstreetpr) – Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT) has again found itself in the news for all the wrong reasons, after reports emerged that an employee who came to the assistance of a customer who was being assaulted, was fired for his efforts.
Kristopher Oswald, the former employee, told news outlets that while on his 2:30 break on Sunday morning he saw a woman being accosted by an assailant in the parking lot of the Michigan store. He offered assistance and in the process the attacker punched him in the head and shouted that he was going to kill him. A scuffle ensued and two other men entered the fray, also attacking Oswald. Deputies from the Livingston County sheriff’s department arrived on the scene and broke up the altercation.
Now, instead of being hailed for his gallantry and valiant efforts, Oswald has found himself out of a job after being told that his actions violated Wal-Mart policies addressing workplace violence that prohibit employees from tackling shoplifters or assaulting colleagues. He had only been working at the Hartland Township store for approximately seven weeks and as a result he had not completed enough time to qualify for status as a permanent employee. After the incident he was given documentation by management of his store location that said, “after a violation of company policy on his lunch break, it was determined to end his temporary assignment.”
A spokeswoman for Wal-Mart said that the company does understand what took place and appreciates what Oswald tried to do but the facts remain that the actions were in direct breach of store regulations so he had to be let go. It remains unclear what stance the company has for dealing with cases of self defense of situations where imminent danger exist.
For his part, Oswald said he is very surprised by the turn of events as he never expected to lose his job but if faced with the situation again he would always do the right thing.
