Teenage Audi mechanic committed suicide after bullying
Discussion
OpulentBob said:
WinstonWolf said:
OpulentBob said:
WinstonWolf said:
Vaud said:
WinstonWolf said:
Apprentices start at the bottom, if tea needs making that's the apprentices job. That's how it's always been and how it always will.
Update the website?
Nope. We hire apprentices from school. They are treated as everyone else. They make the tea for themselves. Update the website?
king set fire to them right now. Someone has to do the st jobs, start at the bottom and work up...On this thread, you're King Bants.
On cycling threads, you're delicate Daisy.
What's the difference between bullying of colleagues, and bullying of cyclists (as the cycling fraternity would have you believe happens by nasty nasty cagers)?
Do I like s
t driving however? Nah...
And you didn't answer the question... Why is bullying of one form acceptable, and not the other?
HTH.
OpulentBob said:
Not all road users. Just the selfish ones. My roads are for the benefit of all users, no matter how many wheels or legs...
And you didn't answer the question... Why is bullying of one form acceptable, and not the other?
Well that's obvious. One is the type WinstonWolf engaged in and was all just lovely fun where men greased each others balls with one hand and held tools in an ultimate manly way in the other. You know the kind that's all just about character building, and is victimless and hardly anyone ever kills themselves.And you didn't answer the question... Why is bullying of one form acceptable, and not the other?
The other type is directed at someone WinstonWolf likes, so is bad.
JontyR said:
Their FB page has been somewhat taken over by reviews!
Don't think anyone who visits their page will be left in any doubt as to what happened!
Bit of a PR nightmare for the company that will take a bit of getting out of. I think they could start with acknowledging their wrong and apologies to the family? Although that might take some sincerity! Also the sacking of the key managers would be good too. One only hopes that the blood these guys have on their hands doesn't wash off for a long time!
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Reading-Audi/158618...
That isn't their page (or rather that is an unofficial page)Don't think anyone who visits their page will be left in any doubt as to what happened!
Bit of a PR nightmare for the company that will take a bit of getting out of. I think they could start with acknowledging their wrong and apologies to the family? Although that might take some sincerity! Also the sacking of the key managers would be good too. One only hopes that the blood these guys have on their hands doesn't wash off for a long time!
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Reading-Audi/158618...
Their official twitter and facebook seem to have been taken down.
_dobbo_ said:
OpulentBob said:
Not all road users. Just the selfish ones. My roads are for the benefit of all users, no matter how many wheels or legs...
And you didn't answer the question... Why is bullying of one form acceptable, and not the other?
Well that's obvious. One is the type WinstonWolf engaged in and was all just lovely fun where men greased each others balls with one hand and held tools in an ultimate manly way in the other. You know the kind that's all just about character building, and is victimless and hardly anyone ever kills themselves.And you didn't answer the question... Why is bullying of one form acceptable, and not the other?
The other type is directed at someone WinstonWolf likes, so is bad.
Disastrous said:
bobbo89 said:
Disastrous said:
You should nailgun his hands to his feet and force him to drink a funnel of oil or something, then smash him about a bit. It's all good bants when you're on the tools and will toughen him up. Who does he think he is, the cocky 16 year old know-it-all? A few phone directories to the ribs will teach him a lesson and knock the rough edges off him, on the tools, on the tools, in't it?
/WinstonWolf
I'm white collar so the furthest I've gone is jabbing the brakes when the little bugger falls asleep in the car! /WinstonWolf
WinstonWolf said:
Err, you do realise I was the apprentice?
Ahhh so you just had your balls greased and watched whilst other people did, but never actually did it yourself? Then years later defended it because it was all totally normal on the tools.That's fine then. Apologies for getting mixed up.
_dobbo_ said:
WinstonWolf said:
Err, you do realise I was the apprentice?
Ahhh so you just had your balls greased and watched whilst other people did, but never actually did it yourself? Then years later defended it because it was all totally normal on the tools.That's fine then. Apologies for getting mixed up.
fido said:
I heard similar about dealing floors in the 90s - by the time I started it was mainly name-calling (i didn't get it too bad and it toughened me a bit), sexist but not nasty jokes (whilstling the Sesame Street theme whenever this tall lady walked onto the floor), and silly pranks (e.g. urinating into someone's umbrella when it was left in a stand)
Not sure I'd class this as a 'silly prank', surely it's quite possible someone will end up covered in urine?
Emanresu said:
I've seen some horrible stuff happen to apprentices (apprentii?) over the years when I worked in dealerships including young lads having fingers wire brushed and boiler suit sleeves being set on fire. None of that ever happened to me or the perpetrator would have been smacked in the mouth with a ratchet. It's one thing having a laugh sending someone to get a tin of sparks for the grinder but when you start physically assaulting someone you should expect to get the same back. I have my own shop now and have taken on 3 apprentices in the past year. I had to let one go because he had neither the head or the hands for the job and kept breaking things. The other two are a pleasure to work with. They don't know everything, they're just beginners, but I will go out of my way every time to help them and show them things and if they aren't sure they know they can come and ask. One of them was having problems with his parents so I brought him to stay with me and the wife for a few weeks until he got a deposit to rent a flat. We've just helped the other one get his first car on the road. If you nurture them at this early stage, you will have smart, reliable, loyal techs. If you treat them like crap, they'll grow up to be cynical assholes. If you bully them, well, look what happened this young guy.
Nice post. Good to hear that there are people who understand bullying of any sort doesn't belong in this environment.I feel for the dad most...golf.
Nanook said:
WinstonWolf said:
Err, you will be surprised to know that I run an IT company predominantly from home these days. Bloody technology...
Not at all surprised. It was common for those in printing to go into IT when things went pear shaped, yes?You do have a bit of a "back in my day..." vibe about you though.
Pear shaped?
Skills were lost by the bucket load, but hey ho, if an office typist can type,why did we need skilled typesetters anymore?
Proof-readers? Waste of space, get rid of them, who reads anyway? So what if a piece is littered with errors?
I could go on. It's called 'progress'!
I liked 'back in the day'.
I can tell you this, it was f
king hard and I have enough tales about my apprenticeship. However, reading this I am surprised the old 'apprenticeship' ways do still happen. But who do you blame for that? However, what is and should be different today is you really don't have to put up with such treatment: just leave!
That option was not so easy 'back in the day'. The b
ds who did this need more than castigating, but I have a gut feeling there is probably more to this story than meets the eye. 'Back in the day', true, everything was not sweetness and light, but the 60s and 70s to me were the best decades ever. Lots of younger people always say about 'back in the day', 'we don't want to go back there! It was terrible!'
Yet, were they there? Of course not!
And do you know what, it might be a tad sensitive at this time, but nobody blew f concert halls of predominantly kids up 'back in the day'!
Nanook said:
Jinx said:
Perhaps because it is actually a dealership car and spends a lot of time on the forecourt so needs to be kept clean?
Perhaps, and if that's the case, and it's part of his job description, he should get it done.But they generally have valeters for that sort of thing.
At 16, and a financial cost to the company, if the boss says wash my car, you do it and you had better make a good job of it.
People need to recognise the as the apprentice you are starting at the very bottom.
You keep your head down, do as you are told and learn all you can.
In years 3 and 4 you might start to earn your keep and start to pay back what the company has invested in you.
You do not tell the boss to wash his own car. No body wants a hobby "entitled" upstart who is actually costing them money.
Don't get me wrong, what this company did was off the chart and indefensible IMHO.
All you "moral high ground" guys need to spend some quality time in the real world.
Jazzy Jag said:
I think you will find that most contracts of employment have a clause including "other duties incidental to your employment"
At 16, and a financial cost to the company, if the boss says wash my car, you do it and you had better make a good job of it.
People need to recognise the as the apprentice you are starting at the very bottom.
You keep your head down, do as you are told and learn all you can.
In years 3 and 4 you might start to earn your keep and start to pay back what the company has invested in you.
You do not tell the boss to wash his own car. No body wants a hobby "entitled" upstart who is actually costing them money.
When I first started out, we had really bad snowfall that then froze in the courtyard, and I spent all morning clearing it. It was my job, I knew my place and just got on with it. Now I'm earning decent money and (hopefully!) an asset to the company.At 16, and a financial cost to the company, if the boss says wash my car, you do it and you had better make a good job of it.
People need to recognise the as the apprentice you are starting at the very bottom.
You keep your head down, do as you are told and learn all you can.
In years 3 and 4 you might start to earn your keep and start to pay back what the company has invested in you.
You do not tell the boss to wash his own car. No body wants a hobby "entitled" upstart who is actually costing them money.
Jazzy Jag said:
All you "moral high ground" guys need to spend some quality time in the real world.
Ah, the real world,
, of course all of us "moral high ground" guys commenting were brought up on the country estates of our landed gentry parents and got a seat on the board at 18.........or possibly we just didn't get our first jobs with or for dheads.dandarez said:
'Back in the day', true, everything was not sweetness and light, but the 60s and 70s to me were the best decades ever. Lots of younger people always say about 'back in the day', 'we don't want to go back there! It was terrible!'
Yet, were they there? Of course not!
And do you know what, it might be a tad sensitive at this time, but nobody blew f concert halls of predominantly kids up 'back in the day'!
Portrait of a KipperYet, were they there? Of course not!
And do you know what, it might be a tad sensitive at this time, but nobody blew f concert halls of predominantly kids up 'back in the day'!
Ever stop and think it was better because you were young with a life ahead of you??
I expect I'll come to hail the 2000's as the best of times when I'm in a home somewhere in 2060.
Vaud said:
JontyR said:
Their FB page has been somewhat taken over by reviews!
Don't think anyone who visits their page will be left in any doubt as to what happened!
Bit of a PR nightmare for the company that will take a bit of getting out of. I think they could start with acknowledging their wrong and apologies to the family? Although that might take some sincerity! Also the sacking of the key managers would be good too. One only hopes that the blood these guys have on their hands doesn't wash off for a long time!
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Reading-Audi/158618...
That isn't their page (or rather that is an unofficial page)Don't think anyone who visits their page will be left in any doubt as to what happened!
Bit of a PR nightmare for the company that will take a bit of getting out of. I think they could start with acknowledging their wrong and apologies to the family? Although that might take some sincerity! Also the sacking of the key managers would be good too. One only hopes that the blood these guys have on their hands doesn't wash off for a long time!
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Reading-Audi/158618...
Their official twitter and facebook seem to have been taken down.
https://twitter.com/sytneraudi/?lang=en
The links at the top of their website won't working yesterday either but the ones at the bottom do.
Jazzy Jag said:
People need to recognise the as the apprentice you are starting at the very bottom.
...
All you "moral high ground" guys need to spend some quality time in the real world.
We send our apprentices to college and then to uni. They are heavily invested in and if found to be just making tea for some bellend of a manager there would be some serious questions asked....
All you "moral high ground" guys need to spend some quality time in the real world.
But then this is the real world, not the bullying 1950s backwards culture you lot seem to work in, and actively seem to take pride in.
And we wonder why parts of UK industry are getting left behind.
I don't see anything wrong with the 'washing the bosses car' issue. You could argue it's also an attitude test, if the young apprentice cracks on and does it with no complaints it shows a willingness to get stuck in and get on with the job in hand. If they whinge about it or refuse to do it then what else are they going to want to pick and choose? Not saying they should spend all their time cleaning cars/making tea/sweeping floors, but they can't just walk in and expect to be rebuilding engines after 5 minutes.
Saying that, I'd also say it's an attitude test of the manager. If they walk in and shout across the workshop "oi, Jimmy ya, put that fire out, get out the bloody cage and wash my fking car" then alarm bells should start to ring
Saying that, I'd also say it's an attitude test of the manager. If they walk in and shout across the workshop "oi, Jimmy ya
, put that fire out, get out the bloody cage and wash my fking car" then alarm bells should start to ring Gassing Station | News, Politics & Economics | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff