Train firm promised bonuses in ‘crass’ security test
A FAMILY-RUN business that has been a mainstay in Greenhead Park for decades has been passed down to its fourth generation.
Tony Coletta’s Cafe in the Park is a familiar sight to those who frequent the beauty spot off Trinity Street.
The company began when Tony’s great-grandfather migrated from Italy - bringing with him a wealth of knowledge in ice cream making.
Since then, the business has been passed down from generation to generation, with Tony recently taking the decision to hand the day-today running of the cafe in Greenhead Park to his son Anthony, 39, and daughter Lisa, 35.
Although the business no longer manufactures ice cream, the cafe still offers a wide array of 22 flavours, as well as light meals, drinks and snacks.
Tony, who has been involved in the cafe since he left school, said: “We are still going and we have managed to carry on in these difficult times.
“My son Anthony came back to the business in 2019, which has now allowed me and my wife Bernadette to retire.
“My daughter Lisa has been with us for ten years and the cafe is run by the two of them.”
After being forced to shut for seven weeks in March 2020, following the announcement of the first national coronavirus lockdown, Coletta’s Cafe in the Park went on to offer a takeaway service to those using the park’s grounds for exercise.
“When exercise was encouraged in parks we felt we could reopen as a takeaway,” said Tony, 64. “We drifted back to normal in the summer and the ‘Eat Out To Help Out’ scheme was very helpful.
“Then we went back into another lockdown so we took stock of the situation and decided that we could continue - with measures in place.
“There has been quite a steady stream of the public who have always thanked us for being open.”
Under current lockdown rules, hospitality venues are only permitted to serve people seated outdoors, something which Tony says has not been a problem for the business.
“We have considerable outdoor seating at the moment,” he said. “We have terraces and a couple of verandas - as well as about 40 outdoor covers.
“The place is geared up for outdoor eating during the summer.
“Hopefully we will be able to open a few indoor tables on May 17, but we won’t go to capacity just yet in order to maintain some social distancing.”
The family also own the recently renovated Dessert Hut kiosk at Greenhead Park which is used to serve ice cream sundaes, waffles and milkshakes.
A TRADE union has slammed a train company’s “cynical and shocking stunt” after it promised employees a bonus in what was actually a cybersecurity test.
West Midlands Trains (WMT) emailed staff informing them they would receive a financial reward due to their “hard work” during the coronavirus pandemic.
Recipients were invited to click on a link for “information of your one-off payment”.
But the company sent a further email to those who opened the link, explaining that “this was a test designed by our IT team”.
The original message was designed to “closely mimic the tactics that, sadly, are being used on a daily basis by expert criminal organisations to try to gain access to company data”, the follow-up message stated.
The TSSA claimed the promise of a bonus was sent to 2,500 members of staff.
Manuel Cortes, the union’s general secretary, said: “This was a cynical and shocking stunt by West Midlands Trains, designed to trick employees who have been on the front line throughout this terrible pandemic.
“The company must now account for their totally crass and reprehensible behaviour.
“They could and should have used any other pretext to test their internet security.
“It’s almost beyond belief that they chose to falsely offer a bonus to workers who have done so much.
“Our members have made real sacrifices these past 12 months and more.
“Some WMT staff have caught the disease at work, one has tragically died, and others have placed family members at great risk.
“We need to know who sanctioned this email and we need an apology.
“Having fraudulently held out the prospect of a payment to staff, WMT must now be as good as their word and stump up a bonus to each and every worker.
A spokesman for WMT said: “We take cybersecurity very seriously. This important test was deliberately designed with the sort of language used by real cyber criminals but without the damaging consequences.”